The growing degree of automation in the manufacturing industry requires reproducible, precise component and assembly quality so that assembly and joining processes can run smoothly. Both (production) technical as well as functional and, last but not least, visual aspects must be taken into account. For example, when it comes to attaching doors and flaps to a vehicle body or attaching locking mechanisms to doors and flaps, dome embossing technology is the preferred method. In this process, precise indentations are embossed into one or more metal sheets to accommodate the corresponding fastening screws. On the one hand, the calottes act as a kind of pre-centring to make installation easier, and on the other hand, these indentations ensure that the fastening screws do not protrude and do not form any or any large interfering edges. Spherical embossing is a combination of the two processes of punching and forming/embossing; first the fastening holes are punched out and then the recesses are formed. This requires tools (punch and die) and mechanical devices with press force drive. Ideally, the two processes of punching and forming are combined in one tool, as this saves one work step and the dome embossing is perfectly aligned with the hole.

The product and service portfolio of Tox Pressotechnik includes technologies and processes for mechanical sheet metal processing as well as the equipment and drive technology for the realization of the respective production facilities. Tox can supply individual system solutions for punching and calotte stamping from its standard modular system; one example is the development, construction and supply of two gripper systems with which triple calottes can be stamped on the left or right sliding loading compartment doors of a van. The advantage here is that with just one working stroke, two sheets are first punched and fixed in three positions and then three domes with the geometry D = 6.3 millimetres by 90 degrees are embossed.

The two SMB punching presses are designed and set up as individual stations and are based on C-arms with a larger, adapted throat depth and for press forces up to a maximum of 300 kilonewtons. A pneumohydraulic cylinder of type Tox power pack X-S 030 is used as the drive, the tool consists of three combined punching/forming punches and three punching/forming dies, a linear guide system for the tool system and a hold-down device. The scope of delivery also includes monitoring sensors for the top/bottom dead center, an adapter plate for mounting the punching pliers on consoles provided by the customer, an additional free-moving slide on the back of the C-frame with a ten millimeter stroke and driven by pneumatic cylinders and finally the STE external pulse control for controlling the complete punching system and as an interface for the system control. The customer received a complete service from a single source and did not have to worry about the interfaces. pb