Press

Standardized C-bows and driving components for efficient and economic assembly solution

The traditional constructors of special machines or the production equipment designers from production companies usually have a very high competence for process solutions within their fields of activity. In many cases, however, the users are no longer willing to spend their money for overdesigned machinery. Nowadays they decide more than before in favour of economic solutions of short and medium term. Therefore continuously more so-called hybrid solutions are employed, what means a mix of partial automation and manual work. Among others, the advantage of such hybrid systems is their flexible application by simple retooling, and as they are partially automated, they offer nevertheless a good performance. But this means, however, that the tasks regarding development and construction of production equipments, special jig and fixtures and special machines have changed, too. With a maximal use of standardized construction elements like drives and machine components, a quick and economic solution of these tasks is possible.  This situation is, however, aggravated by the fact that the requirements on production plants are nowadays higher than ever before: reduced numbers of pieces, increased diversity of variants, short time-to-market, shorter cycles during life time, modifications at very short intervals. But as if this would not be enough, the situation suffers from an enormous productivity and cost pressure not only with regard to production but also with regard to the operation of the installations. Therefore the constructor together with the customer must scrutinize the requirements and make profound investigations to find out whether the components, subassemblies or partial systems are available in the required quality and efficiency, at the right time and at favourable prices.

WANTED: economic and quickly realizable solution

Here an entire perception is advisable as the more easy-to-control intelligence, functionality and efficiency characteristics are integrated in a subassembly, for example, the smaller are the expenditures for design, manufacture, equipment, assembly and setting of the partial or complete system. A very good example is the module system of press components offered by TOX PRESSOTECHNIK GmbH & Co. KG, D-Weingarten. With an extensive standard program of presses, C-frames, pneumohydraulic or electric drive cylinders for pressing forces from 0.5 to 2.000 kN, and tool holding fixtures, it is possible to build stand-alone presses, integrated press working places, or even complex production and assembly plants at cost-effective prices. It is thus possible to execute most different work like clinching, piercing, notching, cutting, marking, compressing, pressing, force fitting, levelling, riveting, spot and projection welding, bending, drawing, clamping, caulking etc. in good quality and a rational way. This concept and the cost advantages have also convinced the persons responsible for the production at Harting Applied Technologies GmbH & Co. KG in D-32339 Espelkamp when they had to install a pressing device for assembling furniture mountings. After detailed discussions with the customer, the designing engineers from TOX PRESSOTECHNIK decided in favour of a compact pressing system. This system comprises a C-frame type CEB, a pneumohydraulic drive cylinder TOX-Powerpackage type EK, a set-head for the pins to be pressed-in, and the electric wiring ready for connection.

Pneumohydraulic drive technique –
Power precisely brought to the point of perfection

The advantage of the slender design of the C-frame is the all around accessibility for the long and bulky furniture mountings. Also a transport device for feeding the mounting pins is fitted to the press frame. This allows a quick and reliable setting of all pins needed for a furniture mounting and their successive pressing-in without having to put the piecepart aside. A TOX-Powerpackage of series EK has been chosen as drive for the pressing system – a compact, small dimensioned drive cylinder with total-stroke setting, adjustable B.D.C. damping, stroke monitoring and power bypass. This drive cylinder produces a pressforce of 19.6 kN at 10 bar air pressure. For time saving, the major part of the total stroke of 90 mm is pneumatically driven and therefore very quick. The powerstroke of 12 mm is realized with internal hydraulic support. This Powerpackage type is particularly suitable for a machine and tool saving operation and is also most silent. The C-frame has a throat of 350 mm and a bed of 90 x 10 mm (width x depth) for mounting the piecepart holding fixture or, in other cases, for holding the tool die. The cycle times of the pressing system are 1.2 sec. for inserting one pin, using a total stroke of 41 mm and a powerstroke of 12 mm. TOX PRESSOTECHNIK has delivered the press station as completely assembled unit. It may, of course, also be used for other tools where the total stroke and the powerstroke are sufficient and/or appropriate. The availability of the standard components enabled the quick and easy realization of the press system which, as already mentioned, is not only of high productivity but also flexible enough for different applications.