Pneumatic servo actuator technology

This paper briefly reviews the development of pneumatic servo mechanisms from their origins in the 1950s through to the present day. The constituent elements of representative servo pneumatic actuators are briefly described. Problems somewhat unique to pneumatic motion control are described and some techniques to overcome these limitations introduced. The emergence of digital control of pneumatic actuators are reviewed with respect to the level of performance that can now be realised, types of actuator, associated control components and typical application areas for these systems. A number of application examples of pneumatic servo technology is summarised. The direction for future fundamental research and industrial developments for pneumatic servo technology are suggested.