Analysis of the possibility of using high-speed pneumatic directional valves to regulate the flow of compressed air

Most often, proportional flow valves or flow servovalves are used for position control of pneumatic drives. In case of this type of valves, flow characteristic of the valve represents a dependence of flow rate upon analogue control signal (voltage or current). The paper presents experimental studies of two high-speed pneumatic 3/2 directional valves (3-way 2-position) in order to determine the flow characteristics and flow parameters. One has analysed the option to use the directional valves to control the flow rate of compressed air using frequency-based signals.