Patent ID: 8495901

Claim:
A shaping tool, comprising: a rotatable base member having a plurality of profiled bending rollers that are mounted on a circular track and are rotatable about a rotation axis, each of the bending rollers being arranged on a respective radially movable slide that is movable from a first position that defines a maximum working aperture for the tool, radially inwardly to a second position that defines a minimum working aperture for the tool; a plurality of lever arms, each lever arm including a first end, an opposing second end, and a fulcrum about which the lever arm rotates, the second end of each lever arm being coupled to a respective one of the slides such that: (a) rotation of the lever arms in a first rotation direction causes: (i) the respective slides to move from the respective first positions radially inwardly toward the rotation axis of the rotatable base member to the respective second positions; and (ii) the respective profiled bending rollers to move toward one another and toward the rotation axis to achieve the minimum working aperture between the profiled bending rollers, and (b) rotation of the lever arms in an opposite, second rotation direction causes: (i) the respective slides to move from the respective second positions radially outwardly away from the rotation axis of the rotatable base member to the respective first positions; and (ii) the respective profiled bending rollers to move away from one another and away from the rotation axis to achieve the maximum working aperture between the profiled bending rollers, a pressing member engaging each of the first ends of the lever arms and operating to simultaneously rotate the lever arms about the respective fulcrums, in commanded ones of the first and second rotation directions, thereby causing the shaping tool to achieve commanded ones of the maximum and minimum working apertures, wherein at least an unformed portion of workpiece is disposed within the maximum working aperture, the base member is rotated, and the pressing member actuated such that the pressing member simultaneously rotates the lever arms about the respective fulcrums in the first rotation direction, and such that the profiled bending rollers move radially inwardly toward one another, toward the rotation axis, toward the minimum working aperture, and thereby rotationally engage the at least one unformed portion of the workpiece to produce a formed portion of the workpiece.