This is the tenth lesson in the Industrial Hydraulic Power Course. This lesson describes various directional control valves. The lesson explains the function of the ports on a directional control valve and instructs the process of tracing the various flow paths through the valve. The lesson also describes the centering conditions and piloting arrangements commonly used with directional control valves.

Module Objectives

• Identify the schematic symbols for various types of directional control valves.
• Identify the functions of the ports on a directional control valve.
• Trace various flow paths through the directional control valve using a system schematic.
• Describe centering conditions commonly used in directional control valves.
• Describe piloting arrangements commonly used with directional control valves.