Vladimir Mikhailov, an engineer from Kostroma, developed a piston air compressor that does not require a separate camshaft. Instead of a mechanical drive, the intake and exhaust reed valves open and close due to pressure difference.

The design can be used with a standard cylinder-piston group. The pistons are connected to a single crankshaft, and a valve plate with intake valves at the bottom and exhaust valves at the top is installed above the cylinders.

Air is supplied through separate nozzles in the cylinder head. When pressure is created, the intake valve opens, and during the piston's return stroke, compressed air opens the exhaust valve. Thus, the working medium itself determines the timing of valve switching, rather than a complex mechanism with a camshaft and drive.

Mikhailov considers this the main advantage of the scheme: it reduces the number of mechanical elements and simplifies the synchronization of intake and exhaust. All pistons remain connected by a single crankshaft, so their operation is synchronized by the overall mechanics.

In the 4-cylinder version, there are 2 intake and 3 exhaust reed valves for each cylinder. There are more exhaust valves to release air faster and reduce resistance to piston movement.