A specially shaped stainless-steel piston precisely fitted to a borosilicate-glass cylinder lets the Airpel-AB air bearing/ actuator provide “force without friction.”
Pressurized air applied to the air bearing’s cylinder creates a stiff cushion of air to support the piston. The airflow effect prevents the piston from contacting the cylinder wall, resulting in virtually unlimited piston life, no lubrication, and clean operation. The movement of ultralow-friction ball joints used to connect the rod is an infinitesimal drag on the output force of the friction-free air cylinder.
The bearing/actuators come in metric models with four bore diameters and 10 standard strokes for repeatable driving or supporting forces from 2 gm to 58 kg. Operating temperatures range from –20 to +90°C.
