Academic management

     The subject “Fluid power: hydraulic and pneumatic technologies” is an optional subject, to be chosen by the students in the module corresponding to the mentions in the “Plan de Estudios del Grado en Ingeniería Mecánica” (Mechanical Engineering bilingual Degree). It belongs to the topic on “Environment and Energy” and, particularly, it is offered to students in two out of three specialties: “Diseño Mecánico y Fabricación” (Mechanical design and fabrication) and “Instalaciones” (Installations), which are the 4th and 6th specialties in the Mechanical Engineering Degree Verification Memory.

     It is a 6 ECTS credits subject with a clear technological orientation. The subject is planned as a fourth year one, targeting the knowledge of basic working principles and applications of the oleo-hydraulic a pneumatic technologies and, even more, tries to introduce the students in the analysis and design of circuits needed to the power and energy transmission and to the automation of the mechanisms.

          Besides its technological orientation of the subjects, also it is feasible to give a fundamental point of view in the contents, to ease the development for an as wider as possible range of practical applications. Particularly, it becomes quite relevant and frequent the role that the hydraulic fluids take in many power transmission processes, similarly to the role that compressed air takes in the needed energy to move different mechanisms. With the so intended and mentioned focus, the subject Fluid Power: hydraulic and pneumatic technologies can easily be considered as a natural evolution of another subject that the students have in third year, namely Fluid Machinery and Systems, from which it takes the basic principles.

      Therefore, at the end of the present subject, the student should master the following items:

• Basic concept of the oleo-hydraulic and pneumatic technologies.
• Basic principles of power and energy transmission in practical circuits.
• Kinds, design and basic characteristics of the oleo-hydraulic and pneumatic circuits.
• Application field, limits and further possibilities in both technologies.
• Numerical resolution of problems related to oleo-hydraulic and pneumatic circuits.
• Use of numerical simulation tools for the prediction and design of working parameters in a circuit.

        It is strongly recommended that the students have passed previously the subjects "Fluid Mechanics" and "Fluid Machinery and Systems" of second and third year, in order to have acquired the skills and competences needed to apply the basic principles in a technological field. Particularly, it would be required to have knowledge on:

• Basic fluid mechanics and thermodynamics governing equations.
• Dynamic equilibrium.
• Energy equation and head losses.
• Viscous fluid flow in piping systems.
• Unsteady flow phenomena.

      The present subject is planned for the students to acquire the General Skills included in the “Memoria de Verificación del Grado” (Degree Memory), from CG1 to CG15, except the ones labelled as CG10 and CG13, which are related to the company background and risk prevention.

       Besides, among the common capacities/skills in the Industrial branch, it is fixed the skill labelled as CC2, “knowledge of the basic Fluid Mechanics principles and their application to the problem solving in the Engineering field. Pipe calculation, study of channels and fluid systems”, as a main item in the learning process of the subject.

      Finally, the specific capacities/skills that should be acquired with this subject are summarized in the skill labelled as CM6 in the Degree Memory, and expressed as the: “applied knowledge of the fundamental principles and Fluid Machinery”.

      At the end of the Lecture period, these skills should be given some learning results. Particularly, the students should be able to:

• Understand and apply the fundamental systems for oleo-hydraulic and pneumatic technologies.(RON-1)
• Design the assembling and test bench trials to analyse the working parameters of oleo-hydraulic and pneumatic transmissions.(RON-2)
• Supervise the operation, regulation and maintenance protocols for oleo-hydraulic and pneumatic circuits.(RON-3)
• Accomplish the design, calculate and realize a project for oleo-hydraulic and pneumatic systems.(RON-4)
• Use with correction the different Standards and regulations concerning the oleo-hydraulic and pneumatic systems.(RON-5)

      This subject distribution foresees a total of 150 working hours, 60 hours at the university and 90 student individual working hours. For the detailed plan, it has been considered 2 lecturing hours per week throughout the 14 weeks of the semester, so that 28 lecturing hours are available. Also, 14 practical sessions at the class have been planned (14 weeks and one hour per week).

      Finally, 14 hours of laboratory sessions and simulation have been planned (7 sessions of two hours, having one each two weeks).

     The working methodology can be structured in four items: group tutorials with the teacher, individual work, group works and laboratory sessions. The final mark will be closely related to the student performance in all these four items. There are five main chapters, namely:

1. Oleo-hydraulic and pneumatic technologies.

• Power and energy transmission.
• Symbols, hydraulic fluids and compressed air.

2. Hydraulic components.

• Pumps and hydraulic motors.
• Actuators and accumulators.
• Valves and control elements: pressure and flow rate regulation.

3. Oleo-hydraulic circuits.

• Basic circuits and hydraulic transmissions.
• Servo-systems.
• Design and project of an oleo-hydraulic system.

4. Introduction to Pneumatics.

• Systems for generation, distribution and conditioning of compressed air.
• Actuators, circuits with proportional valves and automation.
• Pneumatic and electrical control.

5. Basic circuits, automation and sequences.

• Automatic processes.
• Project and design for Pneumatic systems.

      The subject distribution foresees 60 hours at the university and 90 student individual working hours. For the detailed plan, it has been considered 2 lecturing hours per week throughout the 14 weeks of the semester, so that 28 lecturing hours are available. Also, 14 practical sessions at the class have been planned (14 weeks and one hour per week). Finally, 14 hours of laboratory sessions and simulation have been planned (7 sessions of two hours, having one each two weeks).

      The working methodology can be structured in four items: group tutorials with the teacher, individual work, group works and laboratory sessions. The final mark will be closely related to the student performance in all these four items.

Exceptionally, if sanitary conditions require it, on-line teaching activities may be included. In that case, students will be informed of the changes made.

For the ordinary evaluation, the mark is a weighted average between the exam’s mark and the result obtained for the additional activities. The exam weights 70% and the additional activities weight 30%. These additional activities may include laboratory sessions and others, as activities using the Virtual Platform or problem solving in class. Particularly, one third of the total for the 30% of additional activities is on the part named as “active participation of the student in the subject”. To apply the overall weighted average, a minimum of 40% is stablished in the exam. In the case of not obtaining this 40%, disregarding of the additional activities mark, the subject will be considered as “failed”. In that case, the weighted average will be limited to a maximum of 4.0 points. The mark obtained in the additional activities will be kept along an academic year and, therefore, is valid only for the January, May and July periods.

For the extraordinary evaluations, if the student has not taken any additional activities, the mark will be obtained simply in the exam, and then, the maximum mark will be 70%.

In the case of the "differenced evaluation", the mark will be obtained simply in the exam, with a maximum mark of 100%.

Besides, special care on the exams or additional activities evaluation will be considered following the subsequent main items:

• Cleanness and layout.
• Correctness in the text, without orthographical mistakes.
• Clarity, logically structured texts and detailed solutions.
• Use of ISU or other applicable units. A special consideration on wrong use of units or dimensions of the different variables will be taken into account.
• Validity of the obtained results, with no physically impossible or nonsense results delivered.

Exceptionally, if sanitary conditions require it, on-line evaluation methods may be included. In that case, students will be informed of the changes made.

Basic bibliography:

• González, J., Ballesteros, R., Parrondo, J.L., 2006; “Problemas de Oleohidráulica y Neumática”. Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Oviedo.
• Parr, A., 2011; “Hydraulics and Pneumatics”. Ed. Butterworth-Heinemann Ltd.
• Pinches, M.J., Ashby, J.G., 1988; “Power Hydraulics”. Ed. Prentice Hall.

Complementary bibliography:

• González, J., Argüelles, K., Ballesteros, R., Blanco, E., Fernández Oro, J.M., Parrondo, J.L., Santolaria, C., Velarde, S., 2004; "Prácticas de Ingeniería de Fluidos". Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Oviedo.
• Esposito, A., 2008; “Fluid Power with Applications”. Ed. Pearson
• Daines, J.R., 2012; “Fluid Power: Hydraulics and Pneumatics”. Ed. Goodheart-Willcox.
• Labonville, R., 1991; “Circuits Hydrauliques”, Ed. Lavoisier.
• Carnicer Arroyo, E., 1997; “Sistemas industriales accionados por aire comprimido”. Ed. Paraninfo.
• Carnicer Arroyo, E., 1998; “Oleohidráulica: conceptos básicos”. Ed. Paraninfo.
• González, J.; Arribas, J.J.; Fernández, J.; 1997; “Aplicaciones de Oleohidráulica Convencional”. Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Oviedo.