Analytical/experimental study of the contribution of individual seals to friction force in pneumatic actuators

This paper presents an analytical model and its experimental validation for assessing friction forces in reciprocating seals for single and double rod pneumatic cylinders. The contributions of individual piston and rod seals are analyzed using a combination of analytical and experimental approaches. The former entails a friction force formulation based on a lumped parameter seal model, whereas the latter involves carrying out measurements on complete actuators. Selecting appropriate test conditions made it possible to analyze separately the contributions that individual seals make to the overall friction measured on complete actuators. Analysis results were validated by means of friction measurements on the actuators seals, which were tested individually in specific devices. The experimental results were interpreted on the basis of the proposed analytical formulation and confirmed its validity.