Patent ID: 7546942
Filing Date: 2009-06-16
Classification: B23K,B23P,B62D,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A system for assembling, in particular by welding, structures made of elements of pressed sheet metal, designed to operate automatically on a plurality of different types of structures to be assembled, comprising: an assembly station; conveying means for carrying at least part of the structures to be assembled to the assembly station and for carrying the assembled structures out of the assembly station; a plurality of pairs of side frames provided with position-referencing and clamping means for referencing and clamping the structures to be assembled, the referencing and clamping means provided on the side frames of each pair being adapted to the configuration of a corresponding type of structure to be assembled, in which the pairs of side frames are movable on guide means for enabling replacement, according to the type of structure to be assembled, of the pair of side frames that is present in the assembly station, in which each pair of side frames is carried by a respective basic structure that is movable through the assembly station so as to form with the two frames a unitary movable referencing and clamping module, said frames being mounted on the respective basic structure in such a way that they can be displaced transversely with respect to a longitudinal direction of said basic structure, between an open condition where said frames are set at a greater distance apart, in which a structure to be assembled can be received between said frames or an assembled structure can come out of the space comprised between said frames, and a closed condition, in which the two frames are connected rigidly together and their referencing and clamping means can engage the structure to be assembled, said system being characterized in that the aforesaid conveying means are totally independent and separate from the basic structures of the aforesaid referencing and clamping modules.