Hydraulic cylinders are fundamental parts for the commissioning of various mechanical equipment.
What are hydraulic cylinders?
A hydraulic cylinder consists of two elements: the piston (or rod) and the cylinder.
The hydraulic piston has a rounded shape and moves inside the cylinder, which is empty, through a fluid. Typically, this is a hydraulic oil; this fluid produces pressure on the piston, thus generating movement.
What types of cylinders are there?
The hydraulic cylinders are single or double effect, or telescopic.
Double-acting hydraulic cylinders
In this cylinder the pressurized fluid feeds both chambers, so that the piston movements are controlled both up and down. The rod is present only on one side of the piston and is therefore defined as the “Differential cylinder”. The two cylinders are composed of two heads and a jacket is interposed between them.
Single acting cylinder
The single-acting cylinder is less complex than the double-acting cylinder, since it only needs linear movement for operation. It is connected to the hydraulic unit only through a tube and therefore the piston lifts the weight thanks to the oil pressure while the hydraulic cylinder returns to its initial position due to the force of gravity.
Telescopic cylinder
The telescopic hydraulic cylinder is able to reach considerable extension extensions while having a reduced size when not in operation.
What are the hydraulic cylinders for?
The cylinders find application in numerous sectors, from agriculture to industry passing through services and mobility.
For example, on public transport the platforms used to pick up wheelchairs are raised thanks to cylinders, just as a truck that overturns the load to the ground does so thanks to another type of cylinder. In every industrial sector there are numerous uses of cylinders, also thanks to the infinite customizations that help in the development of always new solutions.