Example: Hydrostatic
It was all of 50 years ago that Linde Material Handling registered its patent for a hydrostatic drive. The principle is as simple as it is effective: unlike a mechanical drive, the motor drives a pump. It passes on the power via a closed oil circuit to each hydraulic motor to the drive wheels.
The twin pedal controls ensure that the forklift truck moves either forwards or backwards. If the pedal is released, the vehicle stops: brakes are unnecessary.
The oil pressure transfers the power evenly via the motors to both wheels. As a result, a differential gear is as superfluous as are clutch and transmission: the hydrostatic Linde drive works continuously and direction is controlled via both pedals.
Benefits for people
The hydrostatic drive simplifies handling: the forklift truck reacts sensitively to every command, it can be steered with enormous precision past obstacles and thresholds and simply directed forwards and backwards with the twin pedals. The motor cannot stall. And since the vehicle stops hydrostatically, no fine dust arises during braking.
Benefits for the environment
In the case of hydrostatic drives, neither transmission and differential oil, nor brake and clutch linings are required. This conserves resources. The generation of environmentally harmful fine dust is completely avoided. The degree of efficiency of the hydrostatic drive is 90%. By comparison: in a diesel engine it is only 45%.
Is it worth it?
Drivers can increase their working efficiency by 20% with the interplay of Linde Load Control and the twin pedal controls. This means delivery times can be shortened and the fleet size reduced.
And thanks to the hydrostatic drive, operating costs fall significantly. It saves up to 30% fuel and an oil change is only necessary every 6,000 operating hours. The degree of efficiency amounts to 90%, while the tyre wear is only half as great. The residual value is increased by up to 15%.
