Method and Apparatus for Establishing a Manual Governor Control Setting in an Electro-Hydraulic System

A method of horizontal directional drilling (HDD) with dynamic scalable controls, comprising:

• moving a drill string using a pump operating at an output level of an output range, the output level corresponding to a position of an input control along an input range in a first control setting;
• changing the output level of the pump in the first control setting, wherein changes in the output level of the pump in the first control setting are proportional to positional changes in the input control along the input range;
• transitioning from the first control setting to a second control setting while maintaining at least some motion of the drill string;
• determining an output limit of the output range of the pump;
• moving the drill string using the pump in the second control setting, the output range of the pump limited by the output limit in the second control setting;
• and
• changing the output level of the pump in the second control setting, wherein changes in the output level of the pump within the output range in the second control setting are proportionally scaled to positional changes in the input control along the input range.

A horizontal directional drilling (HDD) system with dynamic scalable controls, comprising:

• means for moving a drill string using a pump operating at an output level of an output range, the output level corresponding to a position of an input control along an input range in a first control setting;
• means for changing the output level of the pump in the first control setting, wherein changes in the output level of the pump in the first control setting are proportional to positional changes in the input control along the input range;
• means for transitioning from the first control setting to a second control setting while maintaining at least some motion of the drill string;
• means for determining an output limit of the output range of the pump;
• means for moving the drill string using the pump in the second control setting, the output range of the pump limited by the output limit in the second control setting;
• and
• means for changing the output level of the pump in the second control setting, wherein changes in the output level of the pump within the output range in the second control setting are proportionally scaled to positional changes in the input control along the input range.