Pneumatic cylinders are generally used as drives for rapid movements. They are especially well suited for spanning large distances. The space requirement of rodless pneumatic cylinders in the longitudinal direction is practically identical to the stroke length.

In this example, the piston moves over its stroke length in a slotted profiled tube. The piston is connected to the adjacent construction through the slot in the profiled tube. The linear guidance system of the carriage on which the profiled tube moves must be capable of supporting the speeds and accelerations which the pneumatic cylinder may reach.