Patent ID: 8141252

Claim:
A method of assembling truss elements on a rigging table comprising: assembling at least two bunk assemblies for a rigging table, each bunk assembly comprising: a frame extending along a lateral extent and a longitudinal extent; a pair of guides slidably positioned on the frame to move generally along the lateral extent toward and away from each other and able to be fastened in position on the frame to accommodate assembly of different sized trusses; and a pair of automated clamp members each positioned relative to and moveable with one of the guides on the frame to accommodate assembly of different sized trusses, each clamp member capable of securing an intersection of a chord and one or more webs to facilitate assembly of a truss; positioning each bunk assembly on the rigging table in desired relation to another bunk assembly along a base having a generally longitudinal axis and a generally lateral extent to assemble trusses of a desired size; positioning clamp members along the guides on each bunk assembly in desired relation to the respective other clamp members to assemble trusses of the desired size; and positioning chords and webs of a truss and actuating the clamp members to hold the chords and webs in desired location to assemble a truss of the desired size wherein actuating the clamp members comprises applying a clamping force transverse to the lateral direction of the truss at the intersections of the chords and webs between one of said pair of clamp members and a corresponding stop portion on an end of at least one of the respective pair of guides.