System for rivet fastening
OwnerDavid L. LeMieuxinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system and method for rivet setting comprising an anvil having an anvil face and a plunger having a sensor coupled to a control system that measures the distance between the anvil face and the work surface during the rivet setting process and stops the rivet driver when the driven rivet head achieves a desired head height above the work surface. In preferred embodiments, the control system also communicates the stage of the rivet driving cycle to the operators to expedite the rivet driving process.
Claims8
A system for fastening a rivet in a work piece with a rivet driver, the workpiece having a work surface, said rivet having a manufactured head, a shank, and a shank end, the shank and shank end nominally projecting from said work surface, said system comprising:
- an anvil having an anvil face;
- a plunger slidably engaged with said anvil, said plunger having a distal end, said distal end nominally extending beyond said anvil face;
- a load source that is operative to nominally urge said plunger distal end forward relative to said anvil face while said distal end maintains in contact with a work surface;
- a sensor subsystem that is operative to sense the distance between said distal end and said anvil face and produce a first input signal related to said distance;
- and
- a control subsystem comprising a controller;
- said controller subsystem operative to:
- enable and disable the rivet driver;
- receive said first input signal from said sensor subsystem;
- measure a protruding rivet shank length;
- determine a desired rivet head height;
- monitor subsequently produced first input signals;
- determine when one of said subsequently produced first input signals is substantially equal to said desired rivet head height;
- send an output signal to the controller;
- and
- disable the rivet driver when said distance is substantially equal to said desired rivet head height;
- wherein said distal end is nominally in contact with said work surface when driving a rivet and said sensed distance is nominally a height of the rivet shank or of a deforming shop-head button projecting from said work surface.
An analysis system for analyzing the driving of rivets to fasten a workpiece, comprising:
- (a) database system operative to store a plurality of rivet driving information related to fastening a rivet in a work piece with a rivet driver, said information being categorically matched according to a plurality of rivet driving functions;
- and
- (b) an analysis tool operative to:
- compare a first data set from a single driven rivet to a second data set comprised of a plurality of driven rivets, when said first data set and said second data set share at least one of said categorized said functions;
- determine an anomaly condition if said first data set is characteristically different from said second data set;
- and
- indicate said anomaly condition.
A system to aid collinear alignment of a bucking bar tool, a set tool, and a shank axis, on a slender rivet shank for fastening a rivet in a work piece with a rivet driver, said system comprising:
- a first three dimensional position orientation sensor affixed to the bucking bar and producing first plurality input signals;
- a second three dimensional position orientation sensor affixed to the rivet driver and producing second plurality input signals;
- and
- a control subsystem operative to:
- enable and disable the rivet driver;
- receive said first plurality input signals from said first sensor;
- receive said second plurality input signals from said second sensor;
- determine if the bucking bar and rivet gun substantially share a parallel orientation, representative of a rivet driving configuration;
- and
- operate to disable the rivet driver when said parallel orientation is not maintained during a rivet driving stage.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.