Rotary Cylinders

How Do Rotary Pneumatic Cylinders Work?

Instead of a linear motion, we might need a rotating one. In pneumatic rotary actuators, the linear force of a piston is converted to torque by a rack-and-pinion mechanism. A rack-and-pinion consists of a circular gear (the pinion) engaged to a linear gear (the rack). When actuated, the piston which is attached to the rack moves linearly. Due to the gear connection to the pinion, it rotates it with the attached output shaft effectively turning the linear motion into rotational. Typical applications for a rotary actuator are wire or tube bending, open and close dampers etc.