Pneumatic rodless cylinders—also referred to as cylinder slides—are linear actuators designed without a protruding rod. Instead, they use a compact internal piston that travels inside a sealed actuator tube. This piston is connected to an external carriage, which moves in tandem with the piston to transport loads along a defined path. These systems are commonly used in automated industrial environments for space-saving, efficient motion control.
Applications of Pneumatic Rodless Cylinders
Rodless pneumatic cylinders are used to move items horizontally or vertically across factory floors and assembly lines. Their slim, rod-free design makes them ideal in settings with limited space. In addition to transporting components, they can also act as static mounting bases for tools or devices. In sectors like food packaging, these cylinders are often employed in repetitive pick-and-place operations due to their consistent motion and reliability.
Types of Pneumatic Rodless Cylinders
Magnetically Coupled Cylinders: These cylinders utilize powerful magnets to connect the internal piston with the external carriage. As the piston moves, the magnetic field ensures the carriage follows the same motion without any physical link between them. This design reduces wear and contamination risks.
Mechanically Coupled Cylinders: Featuring a direct mechanical connection between the piston and carriage, these systems use sealing bands within the actuator body to prevent air leakage and block contaminants. The robust design supports additional components such as sensors, brakes, and valves, offering more flexibility and load-bearing capacity for complex industrial tasks.
MY1 Series Rodless Guided Cylinder
The MY1 series rodless actuators are ideally suited for applications requiring long strokes with a compact size and integrated guide. The series includes four standard models and users can match the applications specific accuracy and load requirements with the appropriate bearing style. They are available in various bore sizes ranging from 16 to 100mm. Standard stroke lengths are available op to 2000mm with a 5000mm long stroke length option on some bore sizes.
Mechanical joint rodless cylinder
Bore sizes: 16, 20, 25, 32, 40, 50, 63, 80 and 100
Strokes from 100mm through 5000mm depending upon bore size
With one or two stroke adjusters with or without shocks
Variety of switches and lead wire lengths
SMC MY Series Rodless Cylinders
SMC CDY1S 10-15mm Diameter Cylinder
Cylinder coupled to piston by magnetic force - no seals needed therefore leakage is eliminated
High load capacity
Autoswitch available
Note
If magnet retaining force is exceeded by the load, the carriage may uncouple from the internal magnets. In this situation, the carriage should be pushed to the stroke end by hand (or the piston moved via air pressure) to re-couple the carriage and piston.
SMC CDY1S 10-15mm Diameter Cylinder
Cylinder coupled to piston by magnetic force - no seals needed therefore leakage is eliminated
High load capacity
Autoswitch available
Note
If magnet retaining force is exceeded by the load, the carriage may uncouple from the internal magnets. In this situation, the carriage should be pushed to the stroke end by hand (or the piston moved via air pressure) to re-couple the carriage and piston.
The SMC CY3B rodless cylinder magnetically coupled uses industrial strength magnet located in the piston and external carriage to form a single unit that will travel when actuated with air pressure. The CY3B series has resin based lube retainers installed on the dust seal to more evenly distribute lubricant for a reduction in minimum operating pressure. It has 70% longer wear rings will distribute a side load over a larger contact area for improved bearing performance.
Rubber bumper on both ends
Piston peed 50 to 500 mm/sec
