Whats Special About Pneumatics?
There is a standard for pneumatic systems (AS 2788, 2002) however it doesn’t deal specifically with safety or the use of pneumatic components. In AS 4024.1 (2006), pneumatic components are often treated the same as electrical, hydraulic, mechanical or electronic components. This makes the text simpler and allows the theory to be applied “across-the-board”. It is worth noting that pneumatic components differ in several ways from other equipment: • Air is exhausted to atmosphere. (Issues can include leakage, loss of power, timing variations, noise pollution, etc) • Air pressure can vary widely – from vacuum to many BAR. (Issues can include variations in force output, performance capabilities, interface signals, etc) • Air flow can vary widely. (Issues can include timing, pressure drop, etc) • Pneumatic force application (unlike electric or hydraulic) can be “spongy” due to the compressible nature of the air. • Quality of air can affect performance, reliability etc. (variations in tempera
