Pneumatic cylinders are components that perform a movement using compressed air as the medium, which is why they are also referred to as compressed air cylinders. Pneumatic drives are a particularly cost-effective solution for a wide range of applications – even for the most difficult ambient conditions – and are characterized by particularly simple commissioning. Speeds of between 10 mm/s and 3 m/s can be achieved. Pneumatic cylinders are sturdy and flexible thanks to the compressibility of the air, which makes them resistant to the effects of high external forces.
Pneumatic cylinders are used in numerous applications in automation technology/factory automation. Typical applications for pneumatic drives are tensioning, lifting, countersinking, pushing, pulling, feeding, turning, gripping, clamping and holding, joining, stopping, stamping, embossing and others.
At Festo, the range of pneumatic cylinder drives includes piston rod cylinders and rodless cylinders (linear drive), swivel cylinders, tandem, multi-position and stopper cylinders as well as clamping and tensioning cylinders, drives with linear guidance, and bellows and diaphragm cylinders. In the range, we offer many standards-based cylinders with standardized dimensions and mounting interfaces. With regard to these dimensions, standards-based cylinders of the same standard are identical. There are standards for piston rod cylinders in round design (ISO 6432), in compact design (ISO 21287) and for profile and tie rod cylinders (ISO 15552).
Festo piston rod cylinders are pneumatic drives for carrying out linear movements. The energy applied to the piston is transmitted to the parts to be moved via a piston rod. Piston rod cylinders are available round cylinders, profile cylinders, compact cylinders, short-stroke cylinders, flat cylinders, miniature cylinders, cartridge cylinders or stainless steel cylinders.
Rodless cylinders are pneumatic cylinders and – as the name suggests – do not require a piston rod. But even without a piston rod they perform a linear movement, which is why they are also called linear drives. Rodless cylinders are used primarily in applications with relatively long travel distances, e.g. as the basic drive in a multi-axis gantry or for feeding tasks.
Pneumatic semi-rotary drives/rotary drives from Festo enable rotary movements up to a swivel angle of 270°. Whether with vane drive or gear rack drive: highest precision is just as characteristic as the high performance and variety of the drives. Our pneumatic drives are used in a wide range of industries for factory automation, for example.
Tandem cylinders are two identical profile barrel cylinders of the DNC type arranged in series for doubling the thrust force in both directions of movement. A high-force cylinder is a cylinder design defined by a series of compact pneumatic cylinders. Pneumatic multi-position drives are available as a version with two separate cylinders and as a version with two to five cylinders connected in series.
Festo guided cylinders – drives with guide rod and linear guides – are pneumatic drives and are among the "workhorses" of industrial automation. They are in widespread use in applications involving lifting, pressing, pulling, pushing, clamping, stopping, holding, cutting, separating, and much more. Both types of guided cylinders combine the advantages of linear motion with those of guidance, and are characterized by particularly high stability.
Festo offers solutions for handling technology worldwide with its feed separators. They facilitate the process of feeding workpieces and are used when continuously arriving workpieces have to be separated and individually transferred to a downstream device. Stopper cylinders are pneumatic cylinders used for damped or undamped stopping of movements in machines or workpiece carriers on transport systems. On transport systems, stopper cylinders with cushioning can stop loads of up to approx. 800 kg.
Clamp cylinders hold or clamp workpieces either directly with a pneumatically operated clamping element or via kinematics. The clamping element is swiveled out of the working area in the inactive status. Using kinematics, very high holding forces can be achieved with low energy consumption.
Bellows and diaphragm drives form a class of their own in the world of pneumatics with special characteristics. For example, they have no stick-slip effect. They can be used as drive or air spring elements in a wide range of applications.
Continuous rotary movements can be realized with pneumatic rotary indexing tables. Rotary indexing tables are used, for example, in assembly applications. A variable direction of rotation and freely selectable graduations allow a wide range of applications.
Shock absorbers absorb the energy of a moving drive. The movement of the drive piston is brought to a standstill by rubber elements and/or hydraulically. The relatively gentle stopping before the end position prevents a strong impact as well as springback and also protects the drive and the machine parts from wear or irreparable damage.
Festo offers mounting elements for drives and sensors, piston rod attachments, linear guides, accessories for direct valve mounting, clamping elements, free wheel units, accessories for damping elements as well as drive-specific accessories as attachments and accessories for pneumatic cylinders.
In a pneumatic cylinder, compressed air is used to exert force on a cylinder piston and thus move it in a specific direction. The motion of the piston is transmitted to the parts to be moved via the piston rod or magnetic friction closure. A pneumatic cylinder is an actuator operated with compressed air usually up to a maximum of 12 bar to generate a linear or rotary motion. A distinction must be made between single-acting and double-acting cylinders (the work is performed only in one direction or in both directions).
A single-acting pneumatic cylinder only has one compressed air connection. The incoming compressed air moves the piston in one direction, and the cylinder force is built up in this direction. If the piston needs to return to its initial position, the air is simply expelled from the cylinder. The mechanical spring pushes the piston back to its initial position. This part has a ventilation/exhaust hole so that no excess or low pressure is generated through the piston movement in the second cylinder chamber.
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The double-acting cylinder requires compressed air for every direction of movement. On this type of cylinder, the force both both the advancing and retracting direction is built up using compressed air. The simplest way of actuating a double-acting cylinder is by using a 5/2-way valve.
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