Patent ID: 7744514

Claim:
In a method of producing vehicle bodies of different types on a production line wherein: clamping frames with positioning, holding and clamping devices for a vehicle body of a certain type are interchanged in a clamping station to convert production to a vehicle body of a different type; the clamping frames are deposited in at least one clamping frame magazine when not in use and removed from the at least one clamping frame magazine when in use; the improvement which comprises: providing at least one of the clamping frames as a separable clamping frame that is separable into individual segmental clamping frames; interchanging a clamping frame in the clamping station in each case by transporting one segmental clamping frame with a robot from the clamping station to the clamping frame magazine, depositing the one segmental clamping from in the clamping frame magazine, removing a segmental clamping frame of a different type from the clamping frame magazine, and transporting the segmental clamping frame of the different type to the clamping station; providing a plurality of receiving means for accommodating a respective one of the segmental clamping frames and each said receiving means having a respective drive unit connected thereto for horizontal displacement of the respective receiving means; displacing the respective one of the segmental clamping frames that is accommodated in the plurality of receiving means from an interchanging position to a locking position and vice versa with the respective drive unit for horizontally displacing the receiving means.