Patent ID: 6151947
Filing Date: 2000-11-28
Classification: B21D

Abstract:
A method of forming a sheet metal piece in a metal sheet so that said sheet metal piece is joined by a micro joint to a stiffening frame of said metal sheet, the method comprising the steps of:forming a window in an area of said stiffening frame adjacent to said sheet metal piece, the window extending from a position corresponding to the end of a flap of said sheet metal piece and along a side of said flap by a length that is at least equal to a width of said flap where a dimension of said window being based upon a dimension of a punch and die pair that are selected from a set of available punch and die pairs based upon a comparison of a length of the selected punch and die pair and the length of at least one bend line of said flap; andbending said flap with said selected punch and die pair.