A New Power Steering Pump for Heavy Duty Trucks

This paper discusses the development of a new hydraulic pump for use in heavy duty truck power steering systems. It is hydraulically balanced in terms of shaft bearing loads and end plate deflection forces. It is capable of operation up to 2000 psi and 10 gpm output. It also includes a relief valve bypass to reservoir feature which makes it more tolerant of sustained relief valve operation. The design is easily adaptable to various mounting and reservoir configurations. In addition, the paper describes some of the tests which were used to evaluate the new design.