Terminal crimping apparatus

There is provided a terminal crimping apparatus for moving a plurality of crimp terminals respectively contained in a plurality of connector housings to a crimping position in a desired order to caulk the crimp terminal on an end of an electric wire. The terminal crimping apparatus includes one turntable for holding a plurality of types of pressure receiving members for receiving the crimp terminals and another turntable for holding a plurality of types of caulking members for caulking the crimp terminals between the turntable and the various types of pressure receiving members. A desired pressure receiving member alternatively selected by the rotation of one turntable is moved to a pressure receiving position. A desired caulking member alternatively selected by the rotation of the other turntable is moved to a caulking waiting position opposed to the crimp terminal in the crimping position. The caulking member in the caulking waiting position is pressed to the caulking position by a pressing mechanism, so that the crimp terminal is caulked on the end of the electric wire.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
This application claims priority benefits under 35 USC .sctn. 119 of 
Japanese Patent Application Serial No. 5-47791, the disclosure of which is 
incorporated by reference. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to a terminal crimping apparatus for 
caulking, inside of the connector housing a crimp terminal loaded in the 
connector housing to crimp an end of an electric wire on the crimp 
terminal onto an end of an electric wire. 
2. Description of the Related Art 
Crimping connectors using terminal fittings of an electric wire crimping 
type have been used as wiring harnesses for appliances, automobiles and 
the like. 
In manufacturing wiring harnesses for appliances, 
i) Electric wires having a single thickness are used. 
ii) In many cases, wiring harnesses are wired by so-called parallel wiring 
(corresponding ones of a plurality of terminals in a pair of connector 
housings are wired to have a one-to-one correspondence with each other). 
iii) Moreover, wiring harnesses conforming to the same specification are 
manufactured in large quantities. 
With respect to such wiring harnesses for appliances which use electric 
wires having a single thickness, are wired by parallel wiring and are 
mass-produced (for example, flat cables), there has been provided a 
terminal crimping apparatus of a simultaneous crimping type using 
comb-shaped crimpers and anvils and simultaneously caulking electric wires 
to respective crimp terminals loaded into connector housings (see Japanese 
Patent Laid-Open Gazette No. 98278/1991). The manufacture of the wiring 
harnesses for appliances can be automated relatively easily using the 
above described terminal crimping apparatus of a simultaneous crimping 
type. 
On the other hand, in wiring harnesses for automobiles and the like, 
i) Electric wires having a plurality of different thicknesses are used. 
ii) Furthermore, wiring harnesses are not wired by so-called parallel 
wiring. Specifically, ends of two electric wires are crimped on some crimp 
terminals. Alternatively, terminals in a plurality of connector housings 
are connected to one terminal in one connector housing. The assembled 
state of wiring harnesses wired by nonparallel wiring is illustrated in a 
simplified manner in FIG. 8. In FIG. 8, reference numeral 100 denotes a 
connector housing, reference numeral 101 denotes a thin electric wire, and 
reference numeral 102 denotes a thick electric wire. In addition, 
reference numeral 103 indicates a portion where two electric wires are 
crimped on the same crimp terminal. 
iii) Additionally, in recent automobiles, a great deal of options are set 
for electronic components in addition to the fact that a great deal of 
grades are set in one type of automobile. Therefore, as wiring harnesses 
which are adapted to the automobiles, wiring harnesses conforming to a 
great deal of specifications must be manufactured. Moreover, the number of 
wiring harnesses conforming to each of the specifications to be 
manufactured is not too large. That is, few-of-a-kind wiring harnesses are 
forced to be produced. 
With respect to such wiring harnesses for automobiles and the like which 
use electric wires having a plurality of thicknesses, which are wired by 
nonparallel wiring and which are the produced on a few-of-a-kind basis, 
there are following problems, so that a terminal crimping apparatus of a 
simultaneous crimping type cannot be applied to the manufacture thereof. 
Specifically, 
i) When one connector housing has n terminals, there are 3.sup.n 
combinations as combinations in crimping respective ends of three types of 
electric wires, that is, one thin electric wire, two thin electric wires 
and a thick electric wire on the respective terminals. Three types of 
crimp terminals are used to correspond to the three types of electric 
wires. When the crimping is completed, the heights of the three types of 
crimp terminals differ from each other. When the three types of electric 
wires are crimped using a crimping apparatus, a stroke for pressing a 
crimper serving as a pressing member against the crimp terminal received 
by an anvil serving as a pressure receiving member differs depending on 
the type of crimp terminal. 
In the above described type of simultaneously crimping a plurality of 
terminals in one connector housing, therefore, a lot of, that is, the 
above described 3.sup.n (81 n=4) comb-shaped crimpers and anvils which are 
adapted thereto must be produced to stand by as required. Work 
(rearrangement) selecting required crimpers and anvils conforming to the 
specification of the connector housing out of the above described crimpers 
and anvils to replace them is required. Therefore, it has been difficult 
to apply the simultaneous crimping type to the automation of the 
manufacture of wiring harnesses because it is too complicated. Moreover, 
few-of-a-kind wiring harnesses are produced, so that the rearrangement 
must be frequently made. Consequently, the simultaneous crimping type 
which requires complicated rearrangement is more unsuitable for the 
automation. 
ii) Furthermore, in the simultaneous crimping type, the order of crimping 
is specified for each connector housing, so that the following situations 
arise. Specifically, when a crimp terminal in one connector housing is 
crimped, a plurality of electric wires which should be crimped on the 
above described crimp terminal in the one connector housing may, in some 
cases, include an electric wire having its end already crimped on a crimp 
terminal in another connector housing. In this case, the other end of the 
electric wire whose one end is crimped on the crimp terminal in the above 
described one connector housing cannot be crimped until the crimping 
process of the one connector housing. As a result, a lot of electric wires 
must wait in a state where one end of each of the electric wires is hung 
on the crimp terminal in the above descried other connector housing until 
the crimping process of the other connector housing. Moreover, the 
destinations of the other ends of the electric wires must be respectively 
judged. Consequently, it is extremely difficult to apply the simultaneous 
crimping type to the automation of the manufacture of wiring harnesses 
because the crimping process becomes enormously complicated. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
An object of the present invention is to provide a terminal crimping, 
apparatus capable of efficiently crimping in a connector housing, electric 
wires which differ in thickness and capable of easily automating the 
manufacture of wiring harnesses for automobiles and the like. 
In order to attain the above described object, one mode of the present 
invention is characterized by comprising holding means for holding a 
plurality of connector housings in which a plurality of types of crimp 
terminals are loaded, first conveying means for moving the holding means 
to alternatively convey the desired crimp terminal in the desired 
connector housing to a crimping position for crimping the crimp terminal 
on an end of an electric wire, a plurality of pressure receiving means 
respectively provided to correspond to the types of crimp terminals for 
receiving in a pressure receiving position the crimp terminal in the 
crimping position, a plurality of caulking means respectively provided to 
correspond to the types of crimp terminals and each moved to a caulking 
position to caulk the crimp terminal in the crimping position between the 
caulking means and the pressure receiving means in the pressure receiving 
position, second conveying means for conveying the desired pressure 
receiving means alternatively selected out of the plurality of pressure 
receiving means to the pressure receiving position, position holding means 
for holding in the pressure receiving position the pressure receiving 
means conveyed to the pressure receiving position, third conveying means 
for conveying the desired caulking means alternatively selected out of the 
plurality of caulking means to a caulking waiting position opposed to the 
crimp terminal in the crimping position, and pressing means for pressing 
the caulking means in the caulking waiting position to the caulking 
position so as to caulk the crimp terminal between the pressing means and 
the pressure receiving means in the pressure receiving position. 
In accordance with the above described mode, the desired crimp terminal in 
the desired connector housing held by the holding means is conveyed to the 
crimping position by the first conveying means. The pressure receiving 
means which is adapted to the desired crimp terminal is conveyed to the 
pressure receiving position by the second conveying means and then, is 
held in the pressure receiving position by the position holding means. In 
addition, the caulking means which is adapted to the desired crimp 
terminal is conveyed to the caulking waiting position by the third 
conveying means. The caulking means in the caulking waiting position is 
then pressed to the caulking position by the pressing means, so that the 
crimp terminal is caulked between the pressure receiving means and the 
caulking means. The foregoing operations are sequentially repeated, 
thereby to complete the crimping of all the crimp terminals loaded into 
the plurality of connector housings. 
The respective crimp terminals in the plurality of connector housings can 
be crimped in a desired order of crimping while selecting the caulking 
means and the pressure receiving means which are adapted to each of the 
crimp terminals. Consequently, the terminal crimping apparatus according 
to the present invention can freely cope with wiring performed in various 
manners between the plurality of connector housings using electric wires 
having various thicknesses, and can be easily applied to the automation of 
the manufacture of wiring harnesses for automobiles and the like. In 
addition, the number of caulking means and pressure receiving means to be 
prepared may be relatively small to correspond to the number of types of 
crimp terminals. Consequently, it is very easy to make rearrangement, 
thereby to make it possible to crimp each of the crimp terminals 
efficiently. Therefore, the terminal crimping apparatus is also suitable 
for the manufacture of wiring harnesses for automobiles and the like whose 
number to be manufactured for one lot is small.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
The present invention will be described in detail with reference to the 
appended drawings showing embodiments. 
Referring to FIG. 3, a plurality of crimp terminal inserting portions I are 
provided side by side in a connector housing CH, and a crimp terminal P is 
inserted into each of the crimp terminal inserting portions I. The crimp 
terminal P has a wire barrel portion Py for holding a conductor Ey in an 
end of an electric wire E and an insulation barrel portion Pi for holding 
an insulated portion Ei in the end of the electric wire E. The connector 
housing CH has an opening CHO on its rear surface. The opening CHO is 
formed in a portion, which is opposed to the rear surface of the wire 
barrel portion Py, of the crimp terminal P inserted into the crimp 
terminal inserting portion I, into which an anvil for a conductor Ay of an 
anvil A as described later is to be introduced. 
Referring to FIG. 1, the terminal crimping apparatus is a terminal crimping 
apparatus of a so-called in-housing crimping type for caulking the crimp 
terminal P in a state where the crimp terminal P is loaded into each of 
the crimp terminal inserting portions I in the connector housing CH to 
crimp the crimp terminal P on the end of the electric wire E. Referring to 
FIGS. 1 and 2, the main feature of the terminal crimping apparatus is that 
the crimp terminals P are sequentially crimped while moving a desired 
crimp terminal P in a desired connector housing CH to a crimping position 
PZ and selecting a crimper C serving as caulking means and an anvil A 
serving as pressure receiving means 20 which are adapted to the crimp 
terminal P. 
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the terminal crimping apparatus comprises: 
i) a frame-shaped apparatus body 1, 
ii) an X-axis conveying mechanism 2 for holding a plurality of connector 
housings CH and moving the desired crimp terminal P in the desired 
connector housing CH to the crimping position PZ in the direction of the X 
axis, 
iii) an anvil conveying mechanism 4 for holding a plurality of types of 
anvils A and moving the desired anvil A to a pressure receiving position 
opposed to the crimp terminal P in the crimping position PZ, 
iv) a crimper conveying mechanism 6 for holding a plurality of types of 
crimpers C and moving the desired crimper C to a caulking waiting position 
opposed to the crimp terminal P in the crimping position PZ, 
v) an electric wire feeding mechanism 7 for sequentially feeding ends of 
electric wires E stripped to a predetermined position between the crimp 
terminal P in the crimping position PZ and the crimper C in the caulking 
waiting position, and 
vi) a hydraulic cylinder for a crimper 9 serving as pressing means for 
pressing the crimper C in the caulking waiting position to a caulking 
position on the side of the connector housing CH by predetermined 
pressure. 
The apparatus body 1 has an upper frame portion 1a, a front frame portion 
1b, a rear frame portion 1c, a left frame portion 1d, a right frame 
portion 1e and a lower frame portion 1f formed into a predetermined frame 
structure. 
Referring to FIG. 2, the anvil A is constituted by an anvil for a conductor 
Ay in the upper stage and an anvil for an insulated portion Ai in the 
lower stage fixed integrally with the anvil Ay. In addition, the crimper C 
is constituted by a crimper for a conductor Cy in the upper stage and a 
crimper for an insulated portion Ci in the lower stage. 
Referring to FIG. 4 showing the crimped state of the crimp terminal P, the 
crimper for a conductor Cy and the anvil for a conductor Ay caulk and 
crimp the wire barrel portion Py of the crimp terminal P with the wire 
barrel portion Py interposed therebetween. The crimper for a conductor Cy 
is in a forked shape in which an anvil body Ay1 of the anvil for a 
conductor Ay can be introduced into an area between a pair of prongs Cy1 
with no clearance. The entire anvil for a conductor Ay assumes an E shape 
by integrally forming a pair of prong clamping portions Ay2 on both sides 
of the anvil body Ay1. The prong clamping portions Ay2 clamp the prongs 
Cy1 of the crimper for a conductor Cy between the prong clamping portions 
Ay2 and the anvil body Ay1 to prevent the prongs Cy1 from being apart. At 
the time of caulking, the anvil for a conductor Ay enters the connector 
housing CH from the opening CHO of the connector housing CH and abuts 
against the rear surface of the crimp terminal P, to receive a caulking 
load imposed by the crimper for a conductor Cy. 
The crimper for an insulated portion Ci is formed in a forked shape which 
is approximately the same as the crimper for a conductor Cy, as shown in 
FIG. 6, which caulks and crimps the insulation barrel portion Pi in the 
crimp terminal P with the insulation barrel portion Pi interposed between 
the crimper Ci and the connector housing CH. The anvil for an insulated 
portion Ai is rectangular in shape, and abuts against the rear surface of 
the connector housing CH at the time of caulking, to receive a caulking 
load imposed by the crimper for an insulated portion Ci through the 
connector housing CH. 
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the above described X-axis conveying mechanism 
2 comprises i) a support rail 21 fixed to the upper frame portion 1a, of 
the apparatus body 1 and extending in the direction of the X axis, ii) a 
slider 23 supported slidably in the direction of the X axis by the support 
rail 21, iii) a connector housing holding portion 24 provided in a lower 
end of the slider 23 for clamping and detachably holding the plurality of 
connector housings CH, and iv) a driving mechanism (not shown) for moving 
the slider 23 to a predetermined position in response to a signal from a 
control portion (not shown). As the driving mechanism, a known feed screw 
mechanism using a pulse motor, a ball screw and the like can be 
illustrated as the driving mechanism. 
The above described connector housing holding portion 24 has a clamping 
member 25 for clamping the connector housing CH between the clamping 
member 25 and the lower end of the slider 23. The connector housing 
holding portion 24 holds the plurality of connector housings CH with they 
being arranged in the direction in which the crimp terminals P in the 
connector housing CH are arranged. 
The anvil conveying mechanism 4 comprises i) a slider for an anvil 3 
supported slidably in the direction of the Y axis by the front and rear 
frame portions 1b and 1c of the apparatus body 1, ii) a turntable for an 
anvil 41 rotatably supported by the slider for an anvil 3 for holding the 
plurality of anvils A, iii) a pulse motor for an anvil 42 fixed to the 
slider for an anvil 3 for driving the turntable for an anvil 41 to rotate, 
and iv) a hydraulic cylinder for an anvil 8 fixed to the left 
frame,portion 1d of the apparatus body 1 for moving the slider for an 
anvil 3 in the direction of the Y axis to move the predetermined anvil A 
to the pressure receiving position and hold the position thereof. 
Rods 31 and 32 respectively fixed to the front frame portion 1b and the 
rear frame portion 1c and parallel to each other in the direction of the Y 
axis are inserted through the above described slider for an anvil 3. In 
this state, the slider for an anvil 3 is supported slidably in the 
direction of the Y axis by the rods 31 and 32. 
The plurality of types of anvils A are mounted spaced apart from each other 
by a predetermined distance along the outer periphery of the turntable for 
an anvil 41. 
A gear portion 42a fixed to a main shaft of the pulse motor for an anvil 42 
is engaged with a gear portion 41a formed in the turntable for an anvil 
41, so that the turntable for an anvil 41 is driven through the gear 
portions 41a and 42a by the pulse motor for an anvil 42. 
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the above described hydraulic cylinder for an 
anvil 8 expands and contracts a rod 81 to move the slider for an anvil 3. 
Consequently, the anvil for a conductor Ay is moved to the wire barrel 
portion Py of the crimp terminal P, and the anvil for an insulated portion 
Ai is moved to a position where it abuts against the rear surface of the 
connector housing CH, that is, the pressure receiving position. The 
respective anvils Ay and Ai are held in the pressure receiving position. 
The above describe crimper conveying mechanism 6 comprises i) a slider for 
a crimper 5 supported slidably in the direction of the Y axis by the front 
and rear frame portions 1b and 1c of the apparatus body 1, ii) a turntable 
for a crimper 61 rotatably supported by the slider for a crimper 5 for 
holding a plurality of crimpers C, and iii) a pulse motor 62 for a crimper 
fixed to the slider for a crimper 5 for driving the turntable for a 
crimper 61 to rotate. 
Rods 51 and 52 respectively fixed to the front frame portion 1b and the 
rear frame portion 1c and parallel to each other in the direction of the Y 
axis are inserted through the slider for a crimper 5. In this state, the 
slider for a crimper 5 is supported slidably in the direction of the Y 
axis by the rods 51 and 52. In addition, a linear sensor 53 (see FIG. 2) 
for detecting a stroke position in the direction of the Y axis of the 
slide base for a crimper 5 is mounted on the right frame portion 1e of the 
apparatus body 1. 
The plurality of types of crimpers C are mounted spaced apart from each 
other by a predetermined distance along the outer periphery of the 
turntable for a crimper 61. 
A gear portion 62a fixed to a main shaft of the pulse motor for a crimper 
62 is engaged with a gear portion 61a formed in the turntable for a 
crimper 61, so that the turntable for a crimper 61 is driven through the 
gear portions 62a and 61a by the pulse motor for a crimper 62. 
Referring to FIG. 5, the crimper for a conductor Cy in the upper stage is 
immovably mounted on the turntable for a crimper 61 by a bolt 63. The 
crimper for an insulated portion Ci in the lower stage is mounted movably 
in the radial direction of the turntable for a crimper 61. The crimper for 
an insulated portion Ci can adjust the relative position of the crimper 
for an insulated portion Ci to the crimper for a conductor Cy in the 
radial direction of the turntable for a crimper 61 by a relative position 
adjusting mechanism H as described later. 
Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, a through hole 61b extending in the 
longitudinal direction is formed in the center of the turntable for a 
crimper 61. In addition, a plurality of insertion holes of a crimper for 
an insulated portion 61c extending in the radial direction from an outer 
edge of the turntable for a crimper 61 to the through hole 61b are formed 
by dividing the circumference into equal divisions, and the crimper for an 
insulated portion Ci is slidably inserted into each of the insertion holes 
of a crimper for an insulated portion 61c. One end of each of the 
insertion holes of a crimper for an insulated portion Ci is projected into 
the through hole 61b, and a rotatable ball B is held in the one end in a 
state where its part is exposed. 
The relative position adjusting mechanism H comprises i) a helical 
compression spring H1 interposed between a step Ci1 of the above described 
crimper for an insulated portion Ci and a step of an upper inner surface 
of the insertion hole of a crimper for an insulated portion 61c for urging 
the crimper for an insulated portion Ci inward in the radial direction of 
the turntable for a crimper 61, and ii) a moving-mechanism H2 disposed in 
the through hole 61b for pressing the crimper for an insulated portion Ci 
outward in the radial direction against the helical compression spring H1 
to move the same. 
The above described moving mechanism H2 comprises i) a pulse motor H3 
serving as driving means fixed to an upper surface portion of the slider 
for a crimper 5, ii) a feed screw H2a rotated and driven by the pulse 
motor H3, and iii) a nut member H2b engaged with the feed screw H2a. A 
conical tapered surface H2c for positioning the crimper for an insulated 
portion Ci in a state where it abuts against a ball B of the crimper for 
an insulated portion Ci is formed in the intermediate portion on the outer 
periphery of the nut member H2b. In addition, a projection H2d inserted 
into a longitudinal groove 54 of the slider for a crimper 5 is integrally 
formed in the upper end of the nut member H2b. The nut member H2b is 
movable up and down in a state where the rotation thereof is regulated. In 
the relative position adjusting mechanism H, the feed screw H2a is rotated 
to move the nut member H2b up and down so that the crimper for an 
insulated portion Ci is put in a predetermined position in the radial 
direction of the turntable for a crimper 61 through the conical tapered 
surface H2c of the nut member H2b. As a result, a relative height h of the 
crimper for an insulated portion Ci to the crimper for a conductor Cy (see 
FIG. 6) is adjusted in, for example, approximately six stages. The setting 
of the relative height h allows the difference in a stroke for pressing 
between the crimper for an insulated portion Ci and the crimper for a 
conductor Cy at the time of caulking (the positional relationship at the 
time of maximum pressing) to be adjusted. 
Referring to FIGS. 2 and 7, the above described electric wire feeding 
mechanism 7 comprises i) a pulse motor 71 fixed to the lower frame portion 
1f of the apparatus body 1, ii) a turntable 72 driven to rotate by the 
pulse motor 71, iii) a plurality of pairs of clamps for an insulated 
portion 73 disposed by dividing the circumference into equal divisions on 
an upper surface portion of an outer edge of the turntable 72, and iv) a 
pair of clamps for a conductor 74 disposed above the pair of clamps for an 
insulated portion 73 and mounted on the upper ends of expansion shafts 75 
passing through the respective clamps for an insulated portion 73. The 
distance between the clamps for an insulated portion 73, 73 can be 
adjusted by a feed screw (not shown in the drawing), passing through the 
clamps 73, 73 so that the clamps 73, 73 can clamp an insulated portion of 
the end of the electric wire E. At the time of adjusting the distance 
between the clamps 73, 73 by the feed screw the distance between the 
clamps for a conductor 74, 74 can be adjusted. 
In this electric wire feeding mechanism 7, the clamp for a conductor 74 on 
which an end of an electric wire to be crimped is clamped is moved to a 
lower crimping position UZ below the crimping position PZ as the turntable 
72 is rotated. The clamp for a conductor 74 which is moved to the lower 
crimping position UZ moves the end of the electric wire E to a 
predetermined position between the crimp terminal P in the crimping 
position PZ and the crimper C in the caulking waiting position as the 
expansion shaft 75 is expanded. A stop position of at least one of the 
clamps other than the lower crimping position UZ is set as an electric 
wire feeding position SZ to which the end of the stripped electric wire E 
which is to be clamped is fed. 
The hydraulic cylinder for a crimper 9 serving as pressing means is fixed 
to the right frame portion le of the apparatus body 1 for moving the 
slider for a crimper 5 in the direction of the Y axis by expanding and 
contracting its rod 91. Consequently, the end of the electric wire E is 
pressed into the crimp terminal P by predetermined pressure by the crimper 
C, and the crimp terminal P is caulked with it being interposed between 
the crimper C and the anvil A as described above. The maximum pressing 
position of the crimper C at the time of caulking (the position directly 
related to a so-called crimp height which is the height of the crimp 
terminal after crimping) can be monitored by a linear sensor 53. A 
caulking operation is previously performed by way of trial to set the 
hydraulic pressure of the hydraulic cylinder for a crimper 9 so that a 
predetermined crimp height is attained and then, the formal caulking 
operation is performed. At the time of the caulking operation, the 
hydraulic cylinder for a crimper in which the hydraulic pressure or a 
value detected by the linear sensor 53 is outside of a predetermined range 
is judged to be faulty. 
The operation of the above described terminal crimping apparatus will be 
described in the order of processes. 
1) The electric wire E is stripped by the known method and then, the 
stripped electric wire E is fed into the clamps 73 and 74 which are 
stopped in the electric wire feeding position DZ by a robot or the like 
while intermittently rotating the turntable 72 of the electric wire 
feeding mechanism 7 through a predetermined angle to clamp the electric 
wire E. When two electric wires are together crimped on the crimp terminal 
P, the electric wire feeding operation is performed twice by the electric 
wire feeding mechanism 7 to clamp the two electric wires E by the same 
clamps 73 and 74. 
2) The desired crimp terminal P in the desired connector housing CH is 
moved to the crimping position PZ by the X-axis conveying mechanism 2. 
3) The turntables 41 and 61 of the conveying mechanism 4 and 6 are rotated 
simultaneously with the operation described in the item 2), and the anvil 
A and the crimper C which are adapted to the type of terminal P to be 
crimped are respectively moved to a position in close proximity to the 
pressure receiving position and the caulking waiting position. When the 
adapted crimp terminal P has been already put in the crimping position PZ, 
the anvil A and the crimper C are not moved. 
4) The turntable 72 of the electric wire feeding mechanism 7 is rotated 
simultaneously with the operation described in the item 2) to move the end 
of the desired electric wire E to the lower crimping position UZ, and the 
clamp for a conductor 74 is raised to move the end of the electric wire E 
to a predetermined position between the crimp terminal P in the crimping 
position PZ and the crimper C in the caulking waiting position. 
Consequently, a state shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 occurs. 
5) The hydraulic cylinder for an anvil 8 expands the rod 81 to move the 
anvil A toward the rear surface of the connector housing CH and put the 
same in the pressure receiving position. 
6) The hydraulic cylinder for a crimper 9 expands the rod 91 a little later 
than the operation described in the item 5), to move the crimper C toward 
the connector housing CH. Consequently, the end of the electric wire E is 
pushed into the crimp terminal P by the crimper C, and caulks the crimp 
terminal P under a pressure with the crimp terminal P interposed between 
the crimper C and the anvil A. 
7) When the crimping is completed, the hydraulic cylinders 8 and 9 
respectively contract the rods 81 and 91, so that the crimper C and the 
anvil A retreat. Consequently, the crimping of one crimp terminal is 
completed. 
8) The crimping process of the subsequent crimp terminal P is started and 
the above described processes described in the items 2) to 7) are 
repeated, to crimp the crimp terminals P in the plurality of connector 
housings CH in a desired order. Consequently, assembling of wiring 
harnesses in a complicated wired configuration is completed. When the 
processes described in the items 2) to 7) are repeated, the relative 
height h of the crimper for an insulated portion Ci to the crimper for a 
conductor Cy is adjusted by the relative position adjusting means H if 
required depending on the type of crimp terminal P. 
According to the present embodiment, the crimp terminals P in the plurality 
of connector housings CH can be crimped in a desirable order of crimping 
while selecting the crimper C and the anvil A which are adapted to each of 
the crimp terminals. Consequently, the terminal crimping apparatus 
according to the present embodiment can freely cope with wiring performed 
in various manners between the plurality of connector housings CH using 
electric wires having various thicknesses and can be easily applied to 
automation of the manufacture of wiring harnesses for automobiles and the 
like. In addition, the number of crimpers C and anvils A to be prepared 
may be relatively small to correspond to the number of types of crimp 
terminals P. Consequently, it is very easy to make rearrangement, thereby 
to make it possible to crimp the crimp terminals P efficiently. 
Consequently, the terminal crimping apparatus is also suitable for the 
manufacture of wiring harnesses for automobiles and the like whose number 
to be manufactured for one lot is small. 
Furthermore, it is possible to relatively adjust the heights in the 
direction of pressing of the crimper for a conductor Cy and the crimper 
for an insulated portion Ci of the crimper C by the relative position 
adjusting means H. Therefore, the terminal crimping apparatus according to 
the present embodiment can cope with electric wires having a larger number 
of thicknesses by a smaller number of crimpers C. 
The present invention is not limited to the above described embodiments. 
For example, although in the above described embodiments, the conveying 
means 4 and 6 are of a rotating and moving type using the turntables 41 
and 61, they may be of a linear moving type for sliding the crimper C and 
the anvil A in the direction of the X axis. Furthermore, a circular, 
pentagonal or hexagonal shape can be adopted as a plane shape of each of 
the turntables 41, 61 and 72. 
In addition thereto, various design changes can be made within the range in 
which the gist of the present invention is not altered. 
Although the present invention has been described and illustrated in 
detail, it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration 
and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation, the spirit 
and scope of the present invention being limited only by the terms of the 
appended claims.