Tuthill Drive Systems' Patented Flow Regulator Stops Spinouts, Boosts Motor Efficiency

BROOKSTON, Ind.--Tuthill Drive Systems, maker of the world-famous Mud Hog brand of steerable hydraulic drive axles, has been awarded a United States patent for its enhanced flow regulator. The exclusive innovation not only increases drive efficiency but also helps off-road vehicles recover from or avoid one-wheel spinouts.

By limiting oil flow to a spinning wheel when traction is lost (as might happen when an off-highway vehicle encounters a muddy ditch), the new regulator helps maintain hydraulic flow and pressure to the other wheels, enabling the vehicle to keep moving with full torque available at the other wheels.

The regulator's unique feature, however, is its ability to permit hydraulic fluid to flow more freely in the reverse direction. Unlike typical regulators, the Tuthill Drive Systems' flow regulator opens auxiliary ports so that oil returning from its loop through the hydraulic system flows more easily.

The regulator's improvements produce four times the positive effect on the drive system (considering each powered steer axle typically has four regulators) - all the while, the new flow regulator consumes about 25 percent less space than comparable products.

The flow regulator patent (U.S. Patent No. 7,114,518) joins Tuthill Drive Systems' three other active U.S. patents and seven non-domestic patents. Designed and engineered to handle steerable hydraulic drive axles on the market's largest combines, the new regulators handle up to 40 gpm of fluid.

With more than 30 years of field-proven experience, Mud Hog brand steerable hydraulic drive axles come in more than 100 models and remain the most widely-preferred steerable hydraulic drive solution for cotton pickers, combines, foragers and other self-propelled farm equipment all over the world.

Tuthill Drive Systems is one of nine divisions of Tuthill Corporation, which operates 27 manufacturing facilities that employ more than 3,000 across five continents. For more information about Mud Hog brand axles and Tuthill Drive Systems or Tuthill Corp., please visit www.mudhog.com or www.tuthill.com.

Mud Hog is a registered trademark of Tuthill Drive Systems.