Apparatus for joining terminals

An apparatus for joining a plurality of ground terminals, wherein each of said ground terminals includes a planar connecting portion and a barrel portion extending from said connecting portion, said connecting portions are displaced from and stacked on each other to form a temporarily assembled unit, said apparatus comprising:

• a receiving space for guiding a temporarily assembled unit along a longitudinal direction of said barrel portions;
• a first of a pair of dies defining said receiving space, said first die receiving a side section of said temporarily assembled unit;
• a second of said pair of dies defining said receiving space, said second die permanently joining said temporarily assembled ground terminals by pressing said temporarily assembled unit in cooperation with said first die;
• a driving mechanism that drives said pair of dies between an open position wherein said temporarily assembled unit can enter a space between said dies and a pressing position wherein said unit is pressed, wherein said unit is permanently joined by driving said ground terminals of said unit in directions perpendicular to the axes of said barrel portions;
• a locking mechanism that restrains said driving mechanism in said open position;
• and
• a lock-releasing mechanism that releases said locking mechanism only when said temporarily assembled unit guided in said receiving space includes said ground terminals stacked in a predetermined stacking configuration.