Patent ID: 7901341

Claim:
A bending apparatus which moves one of upper and lower tables, and performs bending on a workpiece with tools attached to said upper and lower tables, said upper and lower tables having a longitudinal axis, the bending apparatus comprising: a tool-layout information determination device for automatically or manually determining tool-layout information based on product information; a tool housing device for housing tool holders each for holding a tool group including a plurality of split tools; a tool exchanging device for exchanging the tool holders with their tool groups of the split tools between said tool housing device, and said upper and lower tables, the dimension of the tool holders extending in the longitudinal direction of the tables being less than the longitudinal dimension of the tables; and a process-station formation device for splitting a tool group transferred from said tool housing device to said upper and lower tables through said tool exchanging device into a plurality of tool groups based on said tool-layout information from said tool-layout information determination device, thereby forming a plurality of process stations, the process-station formation device being capable of moving ones of the split tools, that were transferred to said upper and lower tables, in the longitudinal direction of the tables to positions on the upper or lower tables not in the tool holders.