Pneumatic cylinder

Pneumatic cylinder, also known as air cylinder, is a mechanical device which uses the power of compressed gas to produce a force in a reciprocating linear motion. Like in a hydraulic cylinder, something forces a piston to move in the desired direction. The piston is a disc or cylinder, and the piston rod transfers the force it develops to the object to be moved. Engineers sometimes prefer to use pneumatics because they are quieter, cleaner, and do not require large amounts of space for fluid storage. Because the operating fluid is a gas, leakage from a pneumatic cylinder will not drip out and contaminate the surroundings, making pneumatics more desirable where cleanliness is a requirement. For example, in the mechanical puppets of the Disney Tiki Room, pneumatics are used to prevent fluid from dripping onto people below the puppets. Once actuated, compressed air enters into the tube at one end of the piston and imparts force on the piston. Consequently, the piston becomes displaced. One major issue engineers come across working with pneumatic cylinders has to do with the compressibility of a gas. Many studies have been completed on how the precision of a pneumatic cylinder can be affected as the load acting on the cylinder tries to further compress the gas used. Under a vertical load, a case where the cylinder takes on the full load, the precision of the cylinder is affected the most. A study at the National Cheng Kung University in Taiwan, concluded that the accuracy is about ± 30 nm, which is still within a satisfactory range but shows that the compressibility of air has an effect on the system. Pneumatic systems are often found in settings where even rare and brief system failure is unacceptable. In such situations, locks can sometimes serve as a safety mechanism in case of loss of air supply (or its pressure falling) and, thus remedy or abate any damage arising in such a situation. Leakage of air from the input or output reduces the output pressure.