Hydraulic excavator needs to rely on the hydraulic transmission system driving the boom to make frequent to-and-fro motion to complete a work cycle. In order to better solve the problem of energy loss in the falling process of the boom, a 1.7 t small hydraulic excavator was taken as the research object, and two modes of the boom potential energy regeneration systems were proposed. Firstly, the feasibility of the two modes of the boom potential energy regeneration systems was analyzed and discussed. Secondly, the schematic diagrams of the two modes of the boom potential energy regeneration systems and their hydraulic circuits were designed. Finally, based on actual working condition data of 1.7 t hydraulic excavator, AMESim simulation platform was used to deeply analyze the working performances and energy saving efficiencies of the two modes of the boom potential regeneration systems. The result of the research indicates that under the same working condition, the energy saving efficiencies of the two modes of the potential energy regeneration systems of the hydraulic excavator booms are 22.1% and 23.7%, respectively.