WIKA’s Digital Pressure Gauge: Optimum Solution for Hydraulic Power Units

A major engineering company has a customer with very exacting requirements for the pressure instrumentation needed in its mobile hydraulic power units. WIKA’s CPG-1200 digital pressure gauge was the robust, highly accurate device both parties were looking for.

Hydraulic power units (HPUs) are standalone units that provide hydraulic power to move a hydraulic motor or a hydraulic cylinder. Large mobile working machines that are serviced in the field typically need a portable and rugged hydraulic power unit to operate torque wrenches, separation tools, pullers, and jacks.

To ensure proper operation and long service life of hydraulic power units, it is important to constantly monitor the following parameters:

• Fluid level
• Fluid temperature
• Actuator pressure
• Relief pressure
• Filter pressure
• Accumulator pressure

There is no lack of electronic or mechanical pressure, temperature, or level instrumentation available in the market. The difficulty, as always, is to find the right one for the particular conditions of each application.

The Requirements for Pressure Instrumentation in Hydraulic Power Packs

A major engineering company that designs custom solutions for a variety of industries was working with a customer who needed dependable mobile hydraulic power units for servicing and maintaining armored vehicles in the field.

One of the crucial requirements was to accurately determine that the HPU was producing the correct pressure to move the actuator. The customer wanted the following in a small and compact pressure gauge:

• It needed to have a back lighted display for use at night.
• The display had to be easy to use and easy to read.
• It must have very long battery life.
• It must have weather protection for use in extreme environments.
• The gauge face needed to rotate to the correct orientation once installed.  
• It must be resistant to vibration, shock, and rough handling.
• It needed to be highly accurate.
• It needed to have safety approvals for use in NATO member countries.

Why the Engineering Company Chooses WIKA USA

The engineering company has long provided reliable, durable solutions for customers in various industries and sectors. Its elegant designs call for high-quality measuring instruments to make sure the systems work as intended. That’s why its managers and R&D specialists routinely turn to WIKA. They mentioned the many reasons they continue to partner with us:

• WIKA works with manufacturers to choose the right instrument for the application, taking into account cost and time-to-market objectives.
• WIKA is a dependable brand with a reputation for manufacturing high-quality instruments across industries.
• WIKA has a comprehensive product offering of pressure, temperature, level, flow, and force instruments.
• WIKA can modify and customize its standard products to meet the particular requirements of almost any application.
• WIKA produces large quantities of components with consistently high quality by following Lean, Kaizan, and Six Sigma principles.  
• As a global company, WIKA designs products to meet all international standards, including those of Russia, Ukraine, and other CIS countries. In most cases, WIKA obtains the required local approvals to meet metrology and safety requirements.

WIKA’s Digital Pressure Gauge Exceeds Requirements

Model CPG-1200 digital pressure gauge

Due to the particular requirements for measuring the outlet pressure to the actuator, a digital pressure gauge was determined to be the best option. From WIKA’s portfolio of digital pressure gauges, our experts selected the model CPG-1200 for its robust design and precise pressure measurements.

The multifunction display of the CPG-1200 has a bar graph with a drag pointer function for easy reading. In addition, the display can be backlit for low-light conditions, and the housing can be rotated for optimal viewing. The CPG-1200 is a pressure transducer encased in stainless steel. It features a piezo-resistive sensor for very low pressure ranges and thin-film sensor technology for higher pressure ranges, which is ideal for applications that contain shock and vibration.  It has an accuracy of ≤ ± 0.25% BFSL – much better than that of most commercially available mechanical pressure gauges.

With an integrated battery power supply and several options for pressure ranges and connections, the CPG-1200 is versatile enough for operation in a variety of applications and industries. The engineering company and its end customer found this digital pressure gauge to be a great solution, and have been extremely satisfied with its performance in the portable HPUs.

Contact the experts at WIKA USA for more information about our digital pressure gauges, other products for hydraulic power units, or industry-leading solutions for mobile working machines.