handling front cover story l
Hydrostatic drive – the beating heart of the Linde fork lift truck – has been going for 50 years. This energy-saving technology contributes considerably to the robust trucks’ precise and sensitive characteristics.
Beating heart T
he first Linde truck with hydrostatic drive was unveiled to the public some 50 years ago at the 1960 Hanover trade fair. What no-one knew
at the time was that the truck, designated Hubtrac H3K, would lay the foundation of a success story that continues right up to this day, making Linde Material Handling the leading manufacturer of counterbalance fork lift trucks in Europe. Many companies in all sectors swear by the red trucks bearing the curved, white Linde logo. Hydrostatic drive is at the heart of every Linde engine truck up to 18 tons lifting capacity. It is the source of the trucks' sensitive, precise driving and lifting characteristics, as well as their productivity, outstanding fuel economy and reduced maintenance overhead.
Even though the principle behind hydrostatic drive has not changed over the years, time and again the development engineers at Linde MH have made crucial technical improvements. With the introduction of the fourth generation of the Linde hydrostatic system, the fork lift truck manufacturer is asserting its position as the technological leader with a new generation of transmission offering improved productivity and lower fuel consumption.
As Theodor Maurer, chairman of the management board of Linde Material Handling, says, "We have never rested on our laurels. At Linde, existing knowledge and experience has always been regarded as the starting point in the quest for further development of transmissions and lifting hydraulics. The best example of this is the development of the drive axle: this new generation features two low-speed hydraulic motors, integrated into a compact drive axle, powering the drive
10 ShD August 2010
www.PressOnShD.com Above:
Fifty years of success separate the two Linde MH truck models: on the left the first, the Hubtrac H3K, on the right the 39X- series Linde H25.
wheels directly without the need for speed reduction gears.
“Previously, the hydraulic motors operated at 3,500rpm, requiring reduction gears between motors and wheels, but today's low-speed motors operate at just 170rpm, so reduction gears are no longer required reducing noise, fuel consumption and emissions. “Progress of this kind requires a deep understanding of the whole system, something Linde has developed in the most effective way possible – through combining truck development and drive technology under one roof. This means that our customers can be confident that by choosing the Linde brand they will be buying into technology that is not only cutting- edge and extremely cost-effective today, but also subject to continuous development and improvement for the future."
As Bernward Welschof, head of drive technology development at Linde MH,
comments, "The essential factor behind every major development stage has been that the drive engineers at Linde MH are able to 'drill down', so to speak, into the truck itself. This is because Linde is one of the few manufacturers of fork lift trucks to take responsibility for each and every component of the truck – from the accelerator pedal through to the wheels.
Furthermore, it is not only the hydrostatic drive unit that benefits from the joint development of hydraulics and trucks under the same roof; the complete lift hydraulics system, including its electronics and control levers, and the power steering, are also products of this principle." Looking to the future, the drive engineers and truck designers at Linde MH already have further developments in the pipeline. Welschof says that, in future, "the hydrostatic system can act as a basis, for example, for connecting the drive principles of electric and
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