Hydrastore Help Develop Hydraulic System For "Trak Rat"
Hydrastore Ltd and DCA have been involved from the start with the hydraulic system for
a project undertaken by Group Engineering to design and manufacture a vehicle to be used
for railway maintenance. The project was a direct result of a plea from a rail magazine for
a modern day equivalent of the Wickham trolley.
One of the main problems concerning the hydraulics for this project was controlling the pump
without stalling the engine. With the help of DCA engineers and hydraulic equipment supplied by
Hydrastore the problem was solved using an electronic
joystick, an Atos proportional valve and a
driver card. With individual ramp controls for forward and reverse it has been possible to accurately
control acceleration and deceleration. Therefore even if the driver is "heavy handed" he cannot stall
the engine.
The complete vehicle has now gone into production and has been on tour making appearences all
over Britain to prove itself. It is powered by a 16kw diesel engine with a hydrostatic drive system and
is capable of travelling up to 20mph carrying 7 people. In addition it has the ability to tow two trailers,
each 3 metres long with a payload of up to 4 tonnes, ideal for transporting heavy sleepers.
Hydrastore Sales / Production Director, Steve Owen, says:
"This project has been a great success, everyone has worked
together to enable this superb vehicle to be created. We were able to overcome the problems quickly and
effectively and we are certain it will be of great use for many years in the rail industry."
You can visit Hydrastore's New Website
which was launched in June 2000 at: http://www.hydrastore.co.uk/
