Abstract:
A multifunction hydraulic head for use with forming and bending machines for sheet metal and/or metal profiles is equipped with carriages ( 15 ) that slide horizontally on guide and shift shafts. Each carriage ( 15 ) of the said machine is equipped with a bracket ( 17 ) that is integral with the respective carriage, the bracket supporting the interchangeable work assemblies ( 18, 19, 20, 21 ) which include a mobile matrix ( 22, 24, 26, 28 ) and a fixed pressing unit ( 23, 25, 27, 29 ); furthermore, the sheet metal ( 11 ) is inserted between the matrices and the pressing unit of the installed unit, to be spot processed by the said work assemblies in accordance with the desired shape.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0001]    The present invention concerns a multifunction hydraulic head for use with forming and bending machines for sheet metal and/or metal profiles. 
         [0002]    More particularly, the present invention refers to a multifunction hydraulic head that can be incorporated into forming and bending machines for sheet metal and metal profiles, in order to work sheet metal involving the following processes: punching, deep drawing or picking, embossing and fastening or cold welding. 
         [0003]    The multifunction hydraulic head replaces the traditional system for processing panels and sheets, which until now have usually been obtained using processing techniques with dedicated machines, with the result that further processing involved the use of additional machines specially created for each processing stage. 
         [0004]    The present invention has applications in the mechanical industry and in particular in the production of mechanical machines and equipment for processing metal sheets and panels in general. 
       BACKGROUND ART 
       [0005]    It is known that processing semi finished laminates and/or metal sections, for example in order to produce metal box structures or plates with raised edges that are formed in various ways, is generally achieved using bending machines that usually comprise: 
         [0006]    a fixed bed to support the material, for example sheet metal, to be bent; 
         [0007]    a support frame for a clamping press; 
         [0008]    a punch, being part of the press, and a corresponding counter-punch acting as means for clamping the material during the bending phase; 
         [0009]    one or more bending blades that can be moved towards the material being processed; 
         [0010]    appropriate kinematic motions designed to move the bending blade or blades along the bed for forming the piece clamped between the punch and the counter-punch; 
         [0011]    means for moving the sheet metal or the profile towards the blades in working conditions; 
         [0012]    transducers or sensors of various types, to control the process, connected to an electronic unit which controls the production process. 
         [0013]    A bending machine of the type described above, marketed by the applicant, comprises a blade-holder structure with a “C” shaped cross-section, mobile in two reciprocally orthogonal directions with respect to the fixed bed, on which the bending blade(s) is (are) fixed. 
         [0014]    A disadvantage of the known bending machines relates to the fact that the blade-holder structure employs bending tools whose use is rather limited, that is, generally only suitable for bending sheet metal. 
         [0015]    However, it is well known that sheet metal is also subject to further processing, for example it must undergo operations involving punching, deep drawing or picking, embossing and fastening, which involve almost fixed cold welding using special forming punches, or other operations to be performed with regard to the edges or the angular parts of the structure. 
         [0016]    In such cases, in fact, there are no automatic machines that automatically perform all of these processes, and as a result the only possibility is using dedicated machines, each of which is equipped with a tool for processing the sheet metal using appropriate assemblies. 
         [0017]    This processing method, however, does not produce high-quality finished products, and in addition it is not possible to perform the processing on a continuous basis or with the same machine, as a result of which processing takes longer from an operational point of view, which makes it awkward to synchronize all of the various phases, particularly when dealing with a large number of parts to process. 
         [0018]    Furthermore, another disadvantage that is quite significant in relation to traditional working systems, stems from the fact that it is not possible to carry out this work on lengthy items, panels or sheet metal. 
       DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0019]    The present invention proposes to provide a multifunction hydraulic head for use with forming and bending machines for sheet metal and/or metal profiles capable of eliminating or at least reducing the disadvantages described above. 
         [0020]    In addition, the invention proposes to provide a multifunction hydraulic head for use with forming and bending machines for sheet metal and/or metal profiles capable of increasing the working capacity of the forming machine, adding functionality that was previously not available. 
         [0021]    This may be achieved using a multifunction hydraulic head for use with forming and bending machines for sheet metal and/or metal profiles, whose features are described in the main claim. 
         [0022]    The dependent claims of the solution in question describe advantageous embodiments of the invention. 
         [0023]    The main advantages of this solution, in addition to those that arise from the streamlined construction, concern first of all the fact that it is no longer necessary to use multiple machines dedicated to the processing to be accomplished, namely punching, deep drawing, embossing and fastening. 
         [0024]    The device according to the invention proposes a basic purpose of making it possible to work sheet metal pieces, including those that are large in size, so that the above processes may be performed using a single multi-function machine. 
         [0025]    The purposes and advantages outlined above may be achieved, according to the invention, using a multifunction hydraulic head for use with forming and bending machines for sheet metal and/or metal profiles that comprise a fixed bed for supporting the sheet metal being processed, a frame intended to support a toolholder structure on at least one carriage, preferably on a pair of carriages, that move in opposite directions along parallel worm screws, along a horizontal axis, in relation to a press that is suitable for clamping the piece of sheet metal during the bending process. 
         [0026]    On each of the said carriages, work assemblies which are the subject of the invention are mounted that are interchangeable in relation to a common support structure, the said support structure being substantially C-shaped or in a shape that is suitable to contain the main body of the working head, which is accordingly integral with each carriage, and which is equipped with processing tools in the form of a fastening unit, an embossing or bending unit, a punching unit and a picking or deep drawing unit. 
         [0027]    Each of the said units house various tools that are suitable for all types of processing so that, in order to perform a particular type of operation on the sheet metal, the operator need only mount the processing tools onto the carriage/s, choosing the most appropriate tool for the purpose at hand. 
         [0028]    As can be seen, the use of such a multifunction head can increase productivity, since the operator&#39;s functions are limited to a few simple manual actions to change the processing tools, with all of the advantages that can be derived therefrom. 
     
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0029]    Other features and advantages of the invention will become evident on reading the following description of one embodiment of the invention, including but not limited to the examples described below, with the help of the drawings shown in the attached pages, in which: 
           [0030]      FIG. 1  shows a frontal schematic view of the machine equipped with at least one multifunction hydraulic head according to the invention as a whole; 
           [0031]      FIG. 2  shows a lateral schematic view of the machine fitted with the multifunction hydraulic head placed in relation to of the central processing unit; 
           [0032]      FIG. 3  shows a lateral schematic view of one of the multifunction hydraulic heads according to the invention represented by the fastening unit; 
           [0033]      FIG. 4  shows a lateral schematic view of one of the multifunction hydraulic heads according to the invention represented by the embossing or bending unit; 
           [0034]      FIG. 5  shows a lateral schematic view of one of the multifunction hydraulic heads according to the invention represented by the punching unit; 
           [0035]      FIGS. 6 and 7  show lateral schematic views of one of the multifunction hydraulic heads according to the invention represented by the picking or deep drawing unit respectively in a lowered working phase, in contact with the piece and in a raised phase. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF ONE EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION 
       [0036]    Making reference first of all to  FIG. 1 , a forming and bending machine  10  for sheet metal and/or metal profiles, comprises a fixed bed that is not shown, for supporting the sheet metal  11  to be processed, which remains clamped against the same pressing element  12  placed against a fixed lower element  13  where the panel is inserted to be held in a horizontal position. 
         [0037]    The machine  10  also has a frame  14  whose purpose is to support a pair of carriages  15  placed on revolving helical arbors  16  or worm screws, allowing translation in a horizontal direction of the carriages. 
         [0038]    There are two worm screws  16  because the machine is usually equipped with two carriages placed on revolving helical arbors arranged in a parallel orientation, one above the other in a vertical plane. 
         [0039]    Each carriage  15  is equipped with its own multifunction hydraulic unit according to the invention, which are all mounted onto a bracket  17  that is integral with the respective carriage and which are accordingly arranged in a symmetrical fashion around the centre of the machine. 
         [0040]    The bracket  17  supports the work assemblies that are the subject of the invention, which are made up of the units shown in  FIGS. 3 to 6 , or a fastening unit  18  ( FIG. 3 ), an embossing or bending unit  19  ( FIG. 4 ), a punching unit  20  ( FIG. 5 ) and a picking or deep drawing unit  21  ( FIGS. 6 and 7 ). 
         [0041]    Each of the aforementioned work units is equipped with an upper work element or matrix and a lower fixed punch element, whose shape depends on the matrix template. 
         [0042]    The panel or an edge thereof to be processed is inserted and placed onto the lower pressing element, so that, upon a command entered by an operator or by means of preset automatic commands, the mobile upper element or matrix comes into contact with the panel to be processed, pressing and forming it in accordance with the desired shape using the relevant pressing unit. 
         [0043]    As can be seen in the figure, the fastening unit  18  is equipped with a matrix  22  and a pressing element  23 , the embossing or bending unit  19  is equipped with a matrix  24  and a pressing element  25 , the punching unit  20  is equipped with a matrix  22  and a pressing element  23 , and lastly the picking or deep drawing unit  21  is equipped with a matrix  28  and a pressing unit  29 . 
         [0044]      FIGS. 6 and 7  indicate an example of how the forming assembly operates, and in this case the picking or deep drawing assembly  21  presents the work tool  28  respectively in a lowered position and in contact with the sheet metal and in a raised position. 
         [0045]    Any other tool equipped with templates other than those illustrated and described may be mounted onto the support structure  17 , according to the type of processing to be performed on the sheet metal to be formed. 
         [0046]    The forming assemblies can also be mounted onto any axis, including horizontal types and even upside-down, that is in an orientation in which the lower element is placed over the top. 
         [0047]    The invention is described above with reference to a preferred embodiment. It is nevertheless clear that the invention is susceptible to numerous variations within the framework of technical equivalents.