Apparatus for producing wire harnesses

An apparatus for assembling wire harnesses in which each wire harness has at least one electrically conductive wire of a predetermined length, and first and second electrical connector elements attached to said wire at opposite ends of the harness, said first and second connector elements respectively engaging first and second free ends of said wire, the apparatus comprising:

• a wire supply, means for feeding said wire from said wire supply into said apparatus, a wire inlet for guiding said wire into said apparatus in a prearranged order, wire measuring means including a wire measuring chuck which selectively engages said wire downstream of said wire inlet and draws out a predetermined length of wire from said supply, said wire measuring chuck being driven along an assembly path of said apparatus which extends longitudinally along said apparatus, a wire cutter reciprocatably driven by a first cam drive into and out of said apparatus assembly path to cut said wire to define opposing first and second free ends of successive predetermined lengths of wire along said apparatus assembly path, a primary wire chuck for engaging said predetermined length of wire near said first free end thereof and retaining said wire length in said prearranged order as it is processed in said apparatus along said assembly path, said first wire chuck being driven along said apparatus assembly path by a second cam drive, first and second presses for terminating respective first and second electrical connector elements to said first and second free ends of said predetermined lengths of wire as they move along said apparatus assembly path, said first press being reciprocatably driven by a third cam drive into and out of said apparatus assembly path, said first press being disposed downstream of said wire inlet and upstream of said wire cutter, said second press being disposed downstream of said wire cutter and said primary wire chuck and further being reciprocatably driven by a fourth cam drive in and out of said apparatus assembly path, a secondary wire chuck disposed downstream of said primary wire chuck and said wire cutter for engaging said second free end of said wire length and for maintaining said wire length in said prearranged order, said secondary wire chuck being reciprocatably driven by a fifth cam drive along said apparatus assembly path, said secondary wire chuck further being spaced apart from said primary wire chuck.