Bending device for bending a workpiece as well as method for operating such a bending device

A folding device for bending a workpiece made of flat material,

• comprising a machine frame (3) having a flat mounting surface (4), at which a clamping cheek (5) is arranged, which can be moved relative to the mounting surface (4) and which releasably clamps a workpiece (2), which is positioned on the mounting surface (4) at a mounting position (6), to the machine frame (3),
• wherein at least one bending means (7) of at least one bending tool (8), which can be moved relative to the mounting surface (4) in order to bend the clamped workpiece (2) around a specified or specifiable bending angle, is arranged at the folding device (1),
• wherein a cutting means (10) of at least one cutting tool (11) is arranged at the folding device (1), which cutting tool can be moved back and forth between a start position (13) and an end position (14) relative to the mounting surface (4) in the direction of a longitudinal machine axis (9) by means of a cutting tool drive (20) as part of a working movement (12), in order to completely sever the clamped workpiece (2) along a cutting axis (15),
• wherein the mounting position (6) transversely to the longitudinal machine axis (9) is specified by means of a workpiece stop (16), which is arranged at the machine frame (3), for positioning a workpiece (2), which is to be bent over and/or to be severed,
• wherein the start position (13) is arranged at the machine frame (3) on one end, and the end position (14) is arranged at the machine frame (3) on the other end, and
• wherein a machine controller (22) is provided, which is coupled to the cutting tool drive (20) and which, to perform a cutting process for severing a workpiece (2), which is smaller than a distance (35) between the start position (13) and the end position (14) with respect to the longitudinal machine axis (9), automatically controls the cutting tool drive (20) to move the cutting tool (11) from the start position (13) only to a workpiece end (36) of the workpiece (2), which is spaced apart from the start position (13), and from there back to the start position again (13).