The cylinder in the system in Figure 4.22 should, theoretically, hold position when the control valve is in its centre, off, position. In practice, the cylinder will tend to creep because of leakage in the control valve.
Check valves have excellent sealage in the closed position, but a simple check valve cannot be used in the system in Figure 4.22 because flow is required in both directions. A pilot-operated check is similar to a basic check valve but can be held open permanently by application of an external pilot pressure signal.
There are two basic forms of pilot-operated check valves, shown in Figure 4.23. They operate in a similar manner to basic check valves, but with pilot pressure directly opening the valves. In the 4C valve shown in Figure 4.23a, inlet pressure assists the pilot. The symbol of a pilot-operated check valve is shown in Figure 4.23c.
The cylinder application of Figure 4.22 is redrawn with pilot operated check valves in Figure 4.23d. The pilot lines are connected to the pressure line feeding the other side of the cylinder. For any cylinder movement, one check valve is held open by flow (operating as a normal check valve) and the other is held open by pilot pressure. For no required movement, both check valves are closed and the cylinder is locked in position.
