According to Wikipedia, an actuator is a device that transforms a pneumatic/hydraulic signal into motion. Examples of these actuators are inescapable. They can be found in two basic forms, one based on a flexible diaphragm membrane, and one that uses a slidable piston to transform pressure signal into motion. Examples are the following:

*Hydraulic cylinder to control the ailerons on the wing of an airplane
*Hydraulic cylinders on industrial vehicles such as earthmovers and dump trucks to raise or lower their cargo beds
*Robotic arms use Hydraulic cylinders to precisely move items
*Gas cylinder used to aid you in opening and closing the trunk of your minivan, or SUV
*Gas cylinder that keeps your screen door from slamming shut
*Fuel pressure regulator in an automotive fuel system
*The diaphragmatic pump found in most medical devices today

Before Synchronic, the actuator had only two surface areas (substrates) for pneumatic or hydraulic pressure to act upon to push the piston or diaphragm away from the pressure. One of the substrates was typically connected to a rod, in order to convert the movement of the piston into useful work and control a mechanism. The problems inherent in the design of the legacy actuator are the following.

*Unequal Actuation Areas – The rod will typically use a defined area on one of the
pistons making actuation unequal in opposing directions.

*1-to-1 Actuation for a Given Control Pressure – In order for the legacy actuator to move to different positions, the control pressure had to be varied or manipulated. This involved an array of pressure regulators and mechanisms to vary the control pressure in order to achieve different actuation positions.

*Inability to Have Fixed Actuation Ratios – The legacy, 2-substrate actuator only had one ratio, substrate A to substrate B.

*Inability to Reference More Than 1 Control Signal – The legacy actuator, could only reference one control signal, from one source, to one substrate, with force in only one direction.

Synchronic Actuator is a revolutionary departure from current pneumatic/hydraulic actuation. What if, you could calculate the exact amount of actuation you need for a given application, using only the system pressure available to you? You would increase the efficiency of your system compressor, and reduce energy and power consumption, by eliminating the need to constantly reduce working pressure via pressure regulation. You would also increase reliability in mission critical applications, by eliminating one more component that could potentially fail, the pressure regulator. You could also have an actuator with built-in redundancy using a failover actuation substrate, should you have seal failure.

Synchronic Actuator Benefits

*1:1 Actuation – Synchronic Actuator can be designed as a 1:1 actuator in opposing force vectors without varying control pressure.

*16 Unique Actuation Settings – Using a combination of unequal actuation substrates, Synchronic Actuator can generate 16 different actuator positions, or 16 different pressure settings when used as a pressure regulator, or 16 different forces when used as a force actuator. These 16 different settings are possible without varying or regulating the control signal. These 16 different settings are hard-wired at the actuator level. In many applications you can eliminate the use of sophisticated microprocessor control

*Redundant Actuation – Synchronic allows for the use of equal actuation substrates in the same force vector, with one actuation substrate as a failover actuator in the event of seal failure.

*Actuation with 4 Unique Control Signals – Since Synchronic has 4 signal ports for 4 chambers, you can design a closed loop actuation strategy that can reference up to 4 unique pressure signals introduced at unique points in a given timeline. A good example of this would be in a turbocharged internal combustion engine, where boost pressure would actuate a valve, but any unplanned increase in, say, exhaust manifold pressure would influence the movement of that valve to maximize turbocharger efficiency.

Synchronic Actuator is not just an esoteric concept, but a patented technology currently being applied to Automotive applications. We are finding new uses every day for Synchronic Actuator that make it a compelling replacement for how you apply the legacy actuator. Our goal with this site, is to keep design Engineers informed of the ways in which Synchronic Actuator is being employed. And if you are a design Engineer, who can find an application for Synchronic Actuator, we welcome you derive your own patent based on Synchronic Actuator. We will support you with a direct license. In fact, if you find an application that leads to a direct licensing of the technology, we will share with you a percentage of the licensing revenues for the life of the licensing agreement.