US 11,141,771 B2Granted

Bodymaker and double action domer assembly with staged piston

AssigneeStolle Machinery Company, LLC

InventorsGregory H. Butcher, James A. McClung, Paul L. Ripple

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A domer station having a domer assembly, a housing assembly, and a stacked piston assembly is provided. The domer assembly is movably disposed within a domer body passage located in the housing assembly and structured to move between a forward, first position and a retracted, second position. The stacked piston assembly includes a plurality of pistons, preferably three pistons, disposed in series and a pressure supply. The pistons are disposed behind the domer in pressure chambers. The pistons have a constant pressure applied thereto and are biased towards the domer. The pistons are, however, each restrained by a stop and do not contact, or operatively engage, the domer when the domer is in the domer first position.

Claims19

Dependent claims

A method of forming a dome in the bottom of a cup-like member, said cup-like member disposed on a moving punch, said punch having a longitudinal axis and structured to move into contact with a domer station, said domer station having a movable domer body and a movable clamp ring assembly, said clamp ring assembly including a clamping ring body, said domer body and clamping ring body each structured to move between a forward position and a rearward position, said domer body and clamping ring body structured to move along an axis generally aligned with said punch longitudinal axis, said method of forming a dome in the bottom of a cup-like member comprising the steps of:

positioning said domer body and clamping ring body in the forward position;
moving said cup-like member into engagement with said domer body and said clamping ring body while allowing said domer body and said clamping ring body to move toward said rearward position;
and
incrementally applying pressure to a rearward side of said domer body and a rearward side of said clamping ring body thereby biasing said domer body and said clamping ring body toward the forward position, whereby the bottom of said cup-like member is deformed,
wherein said domer station includes a domer stacked piston assembly with a plurality of domer pistons and wherein incrementally applying pressure to the rearward side of said domer body includes applying a constant, uniform fluid pressure to said domer stacked piston assembly stacked pistons.

2 more elements

A method of forming a dome in the bottom of a cup-like member, said cup-like member disposed on a moving punch, said punch having a longitudinal axis and structured to move into contact with a domer station, said domer station having a movable domer body and a movable clamp assembly, said clamp assembly including a clamping ring body, said domer body and clamping ring body each structured to move between a forward position and a rearward position, said domer body and clamping ring body structured to move along an axis generally aligned with said punch longitudinal axis, said method of forming a dome in the bottom of a cup-like member comprising the steps of:

positioning clamping ring body in the forward position;
moving said cup-like member into engagement with said clamping ring body while allowing said clamping ring body to move toward said rearward position;
and
incrementally applying pressure to a rearward side of said clamping ring body by allowing said clamping ring body to sequentially engage a plurality of clamping ring assembly stacked piston assembly stacked pistons thereby biasing said clamping ring body toward the forward position whereby the bottom of said cup-like member is deformed.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 16/200,909Filed 27 Nov 2018 · continuation
Priority: 21 Sep 2012
Published: US 2019/0091750 A128 Mar 2019
Granted: 12 Oct 2021
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

B21D 22/30
Deep-drawing: to finish articles formed by deep-drawing
B21D 22/22
Deep-drawing: with devices for holding the edge of the blanks
B21D 22/24
Deep-drawing: involving two drawing operations having effects in opposite directions with respect to the blank
B21D 22/26
Deep-drawing: for making peculiarly, e.g. irregularly, shaped articles

Family

Application13/623,894Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 21 Sep 2012
Application15/412,426Parent of this continuation · filed 23 Jan 2017
US 2019/0091750 A1Pre-grant publication · published 28 Mar 2019
US 10,160,022 B2Parent of this continuation
US 9,550,222 B2Parent of this continuation-in-part
Application15/412,426Parent of this continuation-in-part
US 2014/0083156 A1Published application
US 2017/0128999 A1Published application
US 11,141,771 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.