Products, Parts, Processes, and Poetry #1: Hydraulic Cartridge Valves

Cartridge valves are products
That many people don’t know,
But without their range of functions
How would we control oil flow?

In fact, flow is just one thing
That these valves can shape and change.
They also provide direction
Or influence pressure range.

Check valves might be the simplest.
Give flow one way, oil will stop,
But pressurized in reverse
They flow with little pressure drop.

Relief valves are for safety
As they set a pressure max,
While flow controls might limit
How an actuator acts.

Directional controls shift
To drive motion here or there,
Solenoid or manual or pilot,
They don’t care.

Some valves work proportionally,
Giving fine control,
While others are more limited
In their hydraulic goal.

We might use poppet logic
To control flow with low leak,
But spool valves will suffice
Depending on the job we seek.

A shuttle will compare to find
Which pressure’s high or low.
A needle valve adjusts
An orifice to restrict flow.

These valves are just a sampling
Of the many one might need
In an integrated circuit
To drive motion, force, or speed.

Find them on excavators
Or on a garbage truck,
Harvesters and man-lifts,
Without valves they’d all be stuck.

So next time you reflect
On great food or a sturdy bridge,
Know the tools that made them happen
Used the humble valve cartridge.

By Kanan R Wanha
Written 2024-11-10