Pneumatic Camera Slider

Bill of materials:

• Linear pneumatic slider
• Compressed air (at least 5 bar)
• Air tubing adapter for your air supply
• 4 alligator wires
• Control panel with buttons
• 5/2 way pneumatic valve
• 1 pressure regulator
• QSAA F50-033 tubing
• Matching connectors
• 24V power supply
• 4 screws that fit your slider
• some foam tape to protect your camera or other mountings for your slider

Step 1: Attach Tubing to the Adapter

1. Put the strain relief screw over your tube.
2. Put the tube over the adapter nipple.
3. Screw the strain relief on tightly.

Step 2: Connecting the Pressure Regulator

1. Connect the pressure regulator to the other end of the tube. Be sure to connect the regulator the right way around. The air flow is usually indicated by arrows on the regulator. In our case it's done by pressing the tube firmly into the connector.
2. Connect the regulator to the electromagnetic valve.

Step 3: Connecting the Slider

1. Attach the tubing for the slider.
2. Attach the other ends of the tubes to your slider.
3. If the slider has a way to store the tubing, put it in there so it doesn't flap around.

Step 4: Setting Up the Mounting Parts

1. Put your mounting screws on the slider. Adjust the height of the screws depending on your foam tape.
2. Stick the tape around the first set of screws.
3. Repeat for the second set of screws.
4. Check if your phone is fitting nice and tight.

Step 5: Hooking Up the Electric Control

1. Connect your ground wire to the two coils of the valve.
2. Caution: Some of these valves are polarity sensitive.
3. Connect the positive wire to the bus bar of the buttons.
4. Connect the positive output of the control buttons to the valve. Be careful! Don't short anything!

Step 6: Setup

1. Adjust the pressure regulator to the minimum so you don't hurt or destroy anything / anyone.
2. Connect the adapter to your air supply.
3. Carefully increase the pressure to 2 bars.
4. Open up the needle valves of the silencer in small steps to adjust the speed of the slider system.
5. Increase the pressure to 4 bars after the adjustment of the needle valves.
6. Adjust the soft stops of the slider to get a smooth stop. In our case an 8th of a turn was perfect.

Step 7: Testing

Insert your camera into your mounting setup and adjust the speed with the needle valves if needed.

Step 8: Done

Congratulations! Your slider is finished and ready to use.

Made by Rene & Theo
Munich Maker Lab

Step 9: Optional: Turn It Into a Useless Machine