Continuous Controlling of Electro-Pneumatical Servo Actuators

This paper considers the possibility of improving the control of the operation of a pneumatic actuator. Due to the compressibility of air, pneumatic actuators are most often used in discrete operating mode, that is, the working piston of the actuator occupies one of the final positions. Movement of the actuator piston occurs as a result of the difference in pressure in the piston chambers. The problem of moving the piston stroke in accordance with the desired law of control is solved by controlling the position of the air nozzle using an electromagnetic actuator. Based on the current position of the pneumatic actuator piston and its desired position, the microcontroller generates a PWM (pulse width modulation) signal and passes it to the energy converter that supplies the electromagnetic actuator of the nozzle. The energy converter is realized by switching bipolar transistors with isolated gates (IGBT). Testing the operation of the electro-pneumatic actuator was carried out in laboratory conditions and satisfactory results were achieved in the desired field of application. Further work should be focused on the development of control structures in order to optimize the operation of the electro-pneumatic actuator.