WO2004096461A1

WO2004096461A1 - Device for the removal of dents

Info

Publication number: WO2004096461A1
Application number: PCT/EP2004/004446
Authority: WO
Inventors: Olaf Ritter
Original assignee: Adolf Würth GmbH & Co. KG
Priority date: 2003-04-28
Filing date: 2004-04-28
Publication date: 2004-11-11
Also published as: EP1624983A1; ES2346653T3; DK1624983T3; DE502004011129D1; DE10320512A1; EP1624983B1; ATE466673T1

Abstract

Disclosed is a device for extracting concave dents (12) from sheet metal. The inventive device comprises a basic body (1) that is made of plastic and is provided with several continuous bores into which traction elements (6) made of metallic material are inserted. One end of said traction elements encompasses an enlarged head (7). The forward end (5) of the traction elements protrudes from the basic body (1) at the opposite end when the head (7) rests against the basic body (1). The forward end (5) of the traction elements is welded onto the sheet metal, whereupon the basic body (1) is retracted in order to remove the dent (12).

Description

Dent removal device

The invention relates to a device with the aid of which concave dents can be pulled out of metal sheets, in particular from motor vehicle bodies.

It is known that you can weld pins into such bumps, which you can then pull to pull out the bumps. It is also known to insert several such pins in isolation through a metal rail and then to weld them on. Then the several pins can be pulled out together by pulling on the rail. After pulling out the bulge, the pins are removed, which can be done, for example, with scissors.

The invention is based on the object of providing a device which offers increased use advantages with a simple construction and simple manufacture. To achieve this object, the invention proposes a device with the features mentioned in claim 1. Developments of the invention are the subject of dependent claims.

The front end of the tension element protruding from the base body is connected to the sheet in the bulge in the device according to the invention. This can be done, for example, by welding. The other end, which is accessible, is connected to a welding electrode. This allows the current to enter the sheet. The base body can serve on the one hand to hold the tension element before and during the connection to the sheet metal, and on the other hand as an attacking means for pulling out the bulge with the aid of the tension element fastened in it. It can be pulled out with pliers or another instrument, for example.

In the simplest case, the base body can have a single tension element. Then the main body primarily serves to hold the tension element during fastening. If there is only one tension element, the tension element can also be connected to the base body in a fixed manner, that is to say immovably.

However, it is also possible and within the scope of the finding that the tension element is held to be displaceable to a limited extent in its own longitudinal direction with respect to the base body. In the case of the bracket which can be displaced to a limited extent, the tension element can in particular be spring-loaded. The loading takes place in the direction that the tension element is arranged in its one end position, in which its front end protrudes as far as possible out of the base body. In this position, the connection to the sheet in the dent is also made. It is particularly expedient if, in a further development of the invention, the base body has at least two tension elements which are held so as to be displaceable independently of one another with respect to the base body consisting of insulating material. In this way it is possible to weld the tension elements into the bulge, which indeed has an irregular shape, and then jointly to remove the bulge by pulling on the base body.

For positive locking in the pulling direction, the displaceable pulling element according to the invention can have a head, which then lies against the base body when pulling. The head can be designed similar to a screw.

It is not only possible to weld the tension element with its front end to the sheet metal, but it is also possible to connect a connecting bolt to the sheet metal, which is then connected to the tension element. This connection between the tension element and the connecting bolt can be a screw connection, for example. In this way it is possible to first connect the connection bolts to the sheet metal without being disturbed by the base body at work. Only then can the connection with the tension elements be established.

According to the invention, in a further development it can be provided that at least one tension element is rotatably held in the base body. This twisting can serve on the one hand to produce the screw connection with the connecting bolt, and on the other hand also to shear off the pulling element by twisting the sheet metal after pulling out the bulge. For rotating the tension element, the head of the tension element can have the design of a screw head, for example, so that conventional tools can then be used. If the base body has a plurality of tension elements, these can preferably be arranged in a row in a further development, a straight-line row being preferred. Often, bumps in sheets that need to be pulled out are arranged in a line.

In the case of major damage, base bodies with several rows of tension elements can also be used, in which the rows run parallel to one another, for example.

In a development of the invention it can be provided that the attack formation on the base body has at least one, preferably two undercuts. Behind these undercut surfaces, a pulling element can be used to grip and pull.

It is particularly expedient if the undercuts are arranged or formed on two sides of the base body facing away from one another. In this case, it is possible, for example, to attach a train adapter in such a way that it cannot slide off.

In particular, it can be provided that the at least one undercut is formed by the flank of a groove.

In a further development of the invention, it can be provided that, in the case of two undercuts, both boundary surfaces adjacent to the undercut surface run parallel to one another in pairs. As a result, a pull adapter with the undercut can be attached at any point along the length of the base body.

This applies in particular if the base body is designed like a strip, as is proposed by the invention in a further development. According to the invention, it can be provided in a further development that two base bodies can be connected to one another, for example by pushing one into the other. The connection can take place side by side as well as one behind the other. The insertion can be designed so that it runs transversely to the direction of pull, so that a basic body connected in the direction of pull is created.

In a further development of the invention, it can be provided that the base body and / or the length of the tension elements are designed in such a way that the front ends of the tension elements have a predetermined contour when they rest in the direction of tension. In most cases, this contour should be straight. But there are also cases where there is a bump at a point that itself has a curvature when not dented. Here, the base body and / or the tension elements can be dimensioned so that this shape is created when they are pulled out.

In a further development, it can be provided that the base body has a plurality of sections which are flexibly connected to one another, at least one tension element being present in each section. Here it is possible for the several tension elements to be connected to the sheet metal and then for individual sections to be pulled out, which is particularly useful for larger bumps which cannot be pulled out in one go.

The invention proposes a train adapter that can be connected to the base body and / or the train elements. In particular, such a pull adapter can have the shape of a square hollow profile with a slotted side. Such a train adapter can be made in any length or shortness and connected to the base body. Pliers, a straightening bench, a slide hammer or the like can be used to actuate the pull adapter. Further features, details and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred embodiments of the invention, the patent claims and the abstract, the wording of both of which is made by reference to the content of the description, and with reference to the drawing. Here show:

1 shows a section through a device according to the invention in a plane containing the longitudinal axis of a tension element;

Figure 2 is a side view of the arrangement of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a schematic front view of an arrangement with a series of tension elements;

FIG. 4 shows a representation corresponding to FIG. 3 for a base body with two rows of tension elements;

Figure 5 shows schematically the arrangement of the tension elements in the device of Figure 4;

FIG. 6 shows a representation corresponding to FIGS. 3 and 4 for a base body with three rows of tension elements;

FIG. 7 shows a basic body with only one tension element;

FIG. 8 shows the side view of a base body with three tension elements for producing a curved surface; FIG. 9 shows an illustration corresponding to FIG. 8 of a device for forming a concave sheet metal surface;

Figure 10 shows the front view of a device with a base body with three rows of tension elements;

Figure 11 is a top view of the arrangement of Figure 10;

Figure 12 shows another way of gripping the device of Figures 10 and 11;

FIG. 13 shows the top view of an arrangement with a base body, in which the receptacles for the tension elements are arranged along a semicircle;

FIG. 14 shows the alignment of two base bodies in the longitudinal direction one behind the other;

Figure 15 is an end view of the arrangement of Figure 14;

FIG. 16 shows the side view of a base body with lateral connecting devices;

FIG. 17 shows the end view of two base bodies arranged next to one another;

FIG. 18 shows the top view of another arrangement with a plurality of base bodies;

Figure 19 schematically shows the connection of two base bodies at an angle; Figure 20 shows the arrangement of a train adapter on several devices;

Figure 21 is a side view of the attachment of a ⁵ Zugadapters to a device;

FIG. 22 devices with base bodies, which have individual sections and 23;

FIG. 24 shows the aligned attachment of several connecting bolts on a sheet metal surface;

FIG. 25 shows the connection of the connection bolts of FIG. 25 with a device according to the invention;

FIG. 26 touching the devices with the aid of pliers;

FIG. 27 shows the side view of the illustration in FIG. 26.

Figure 1 shows a sectional view through the device according to the invention. The device contains a base body 1 which, in the example shown, consists of insulating material, in particular plastic. The base body 1 is constructed in the form of a strip and has a longitudinal direction, which can be seen in FIG. 2. The base body has an upper side 2, which is flat. The opposite front side 3 is made narrower, since the side surfaces 4 are beveled towards the front side 3. As a result, the tip 5 of the tension element 6 protruding from the front side 3 of the base body 1 can be seen better. The tension element 6 has the shape of a pin, which tapers in cross section in the area of its tip 5. On the opposite side, the tension element 6 contains a head 7, which is designed in the manner of a screw head, that is to say has a slot 8, into which one is inserted Can use screwdriver. The contour that can be seen from the other direction, see FIG. 1, has buckled somewhat. The tip of a welding electrode 9 can be inserted at this point.

From the front side 3 of the base body 1, a stepped bore leads through the base body 1, in the end region of which the upper side 2 is assigned, the tension element 6 is arranged almost without play. A compression spring 13 is accommodated in the widened part of the stepped bore, one end of which is supported on the bottom of the step and the other end of which the diameter is reduced engages in a circumferential groove 14 of the tension element 6.

A groove 10 is formed in each of the two parallel side surfaces 4 of the base body 1 lying opposite one another, the two grooves 10 having the same cross-sectional shape and cross-sectional size, only being formed in mirror image of one another. The one groove flank 11 forms an undercut for engaging a traction instrument, with the aid of which it is intended to pull upwards.

As FIG. 2 shows, the tension elements 6 are accommodated in the base body 1 parallel to one another.

The device according to the invention is used as follows. The base body 1 is inserted into the bulge 12 with the three tension elements 6 used in the example shown, and the tension elements 6 are individually welded to the sheet metal with the aid of a welding electrode 9. Subsequently, a pull adapter is inserted into the two grooves 10 from the end face of the base body 1, which will be explained later. The pulling adapter is then pulled away from the sheet, which means that the pulling elements 5 pull out the bulge 12 of the sheet so that the sheet returns to its original shape. As can also be seen in FIG. 1, the two parallel side faces 4 of the base body 1 above the groove 10 are parallel to one another, as is the groove base 15 of one groove 10 parallel to the groove base 15 of the other groove 10. In other words, the cross section through the Base body 1 the same size at all points. As a result, a pull adapter can be pushed over the length of the base body 1. Such a train adapter is shown schematically in Figure 3. The pull adapter 16 has the shape of a square hollow profile, one side of which has a slot with parallel edges. As a result, this pull adapter 16 can be pushed in the longitudinal direction onto a base body 1 and also pushed through. The pull adapter 16 can have the same length as the base body 1, it can also be shorter or longer. A rod 17, on which, for example, a slide hammer can be arranged, is attached to the pull adapter 16 on the side opposite the slot. The rod 17 can also be pulled with the aid of pliers or a lever.

FIG. 4 shows a base body 21 with two parallel rows of tension elements 6, the distance between the groove base 15 of the one groove 10 and the groove base 15 of the other groove being somewhat larger than in the base body 1 of FIG. 3 used, which has other dimensions. The tension elements 6 can be arranged offset in the two rows, as shown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 6 shows a simplified illustration corresponding to FIGS. 3 and 4, in which a base body 31 has three rows of tension elements 6. From the upper side 32 of the base body 31, two angled slots lead into the base body 31, so that two grooves with a parallel groove base 15 are also formed here. The same train adapter 16 can be used here as in the embodiment of FIG. 3. FIG. 7 shows an illustration of a simpler embodiment, where a base body 1 has only a single tension element 6. In this case, the tension element 6 need not be displaceable relative to the base body 1.

FIG. 8 shows an embodiment in which the base body 1 extends in steps on its upper side 2. In the contact position, in which all the tension elements 6 lie with their heads 7 on the top 2 of the base body 1, the tips 5 of the tension elements lie on a convexly curved line. Such a basic body is intended for the case where a bulge is present in a normally convexly curved surface. In the contact position, the tips 5 of the tension elements lie on a certain contour, which corresponds to the contour of the sheet in the undeformed state. In the embodiment according to FIG. 8 and according to FIG. 9, this is achieved by designing the base body 1 accordingly. It would of course also be conceivable to implement this contour of the tips 5 of the tension elements by means of tension elements of different lengths.

10 and 11 show the side view and plan view of a base body 41 with three rows of three tension elements 6, respectively. Undercut slots intersecting between the tension elements 6 are formed, so that the tension adapter 16 can be inserted from all four sides such that he each holds a number of elements 6 between them.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 12, a pull adapter 16 is used which does not engage in two adjacent undercuts but in two undercuts separated by a slot.

FIG. 13 shows a base body 1 in which the tension elements 6 are arranged along a semicircle. In the top of the basic body several slots are arranged, each with two undercuts, so that you can drive into the base body 1 from several directions with a pull adapter 16. This is an example of how different basic bodies can be kept and used for bumps of a certain shape.

FIGS. 14 and 15 show a side view and an end view of devices in which the end faces 22 of the base body 1 are not smooth. One end surface 22 contains a dovetail notch 23 running transversely to the longitudinal direction, while the other end surface 24 contains a dovetail projection 25 oriented in the same direction. In this way, two base bodies 1 can be connected to one another transversely to the longitudinal direction and transversely to the pulling direction. Since the two base bodies 1 are identical in their cross-section, a groove 10 merges from one base body into the groove 10 of the other base body. A pull adapter 16 can thus be pushed over the entire length of both base bodies 1.

FIGS. 16 and 17 show a further development of the proposal as it emerges from FIGS. 14 and 15. FIG. 16 shows a broken side view of a base body 1 with a groove 10 forming an undercut and a dovetail projection 26 running in the longitudinal direction of the base body. The other side, which is not visible in FIG. 16, has a longitudinally extending dovetail groove 27 at the same point , This can be seen in FIG. 17, which shows an end view of two interconnected base bodies 1 corresponding to FIG. 16. The dovetail projection 26 is inserted into the dovetail groove 27. In this way, a base body with two rows of tension elements 6 is formed, a groove having a T-shaped cross section being formed at the point of separation of the two base bodies, which together with the corresponding groove on the right or left side for a train adapter 16 can be used. The embodiment according to FIGS. 16 and 17 is designed such that several rows of base bodies can also be formed.

Such an arrangement is shown in FIG. 18. Here, a block of three basic bodies arranged side by side is connected to the same block, and a third block is just added.

FIG. 19 shows that an adapter element 28 can be used to connect the end faces of two base bodies 1, which has only a short length, but is provided with a dovetail-shaped projection 25 and a dovetail notch 23. This adapter element 28 can also have a shape in which the two end faces do not run parallel to one another. It can be an angulation in the longitudinal direction as well as an angulation in the transverse direction or a double angulation.

FIG. 20 shows one possibility of how a plurality of base bodies 1, which are attached to different locations on a sheet, can be connected to one another with the aid of a special pull adapter, which is then pulled together. This option is used when there is a more complicated shape of the bulge, so that it does not appear possible to process this with a single body.

In FIG. 21, a first pull adapter 16 is connected to a base body 1, which can then be actuated with a second pull adapter 16 and a rod 17.

FIGS. 22 and 23 show a basic body which is constructed from individual sections 32. The individual sections are see webs 33 connected. Each section 32 contains at least one tension element 6. The sections 32 can also contain a plurality of tension elements 6 one behind the other transversely to the plane of the drawing. A pull adapter 16 can be connected to each section 32 to pull each section apart from the other.

FIG. 23 shows the same arrangement, this time the pull adapter 16 being pushed on in the longitudinal direction, that is to say from left to right in the plane of the drawing. In Figure 22, the train adapter is pushed on transversely to the plane of the drawing.

FIG. 24 shows one possibility of connecting a plurality of welding bolts 35 to a sheet 34, for example in a longitudinal dent. The welding bolts 35 are placed in a template 36 and then welded to the sheet 34. They have a short shoulder with an external thread 37. The template 36 serves to ensure the correct spacing of the welding bolts 35. After the welding, a device 38 is then used in which the front ends 39 of the tension elements 6 have a blind bore with a thread. By rotating the tension elements 6, these are then screwed onto the welded bolts 35. The base body can then be tightened in the manner described, which then pulls the sheet upwards. After pulling out the bulge, the weld-on bolts can be unscrewed again from the pulling elements and the weld-on bolts can then be detached from the sheet metal 34 with a short blow.

FIG. 26 shows a long row of base bodies 1 which are fastened to a sheet metal 34 by welding the tension elements. An adapter 16 is pushed onto the base body, which can then be pulled away from the sheet metal using a pair of pliers 40. This is in cross section shown in Figure 27. The pull adapter 16, which is connected to the pliers 40 via a rod 17, acts on the base body 1. The pliers 40 are supported on the plate 34 by feet 42. The long row of base bodies 1 can be pulled out one by one at the various points.

Claims

Patent claims

1. Device for extracting dents from sheet metal (34), with

1.1 a base body (1, 21, 31, 41),

1.2 at least one metallic tension element (6), that

1.2.1 is held in a form-fitting manner in the base body (1, 21, 31) at least in the pulling direction and

1.2.2 protrudes from the base body (1, 21, 31, 41) at least in the area of its front end, as well as with

1.3 an attack training on the base body (1, 21, 31, 41) for the attachment of a pulling device.

2. Device according to claim 1, in which the tension element (6) is mounted so that it can be displaced to a limited extent relative to the base body (1, 21, 31, 41) in its own longitudinal direction.

3. Device according to claim 2, in which the tension element (6) is spring-loaded.

4. Device according to one of the preceding claims, with at least two tension elements (6), which are mounted independently of one another in a displaceable manner relative to the base body (1, 21, 31, 41) made of insulating material.

5. Device according to one of claims 2 to 4, in which the displaceable tension element (6) has a head (7).

6. Device according to one of the preceding claims, in which at least one tension element (6) can be connected, in particular screwed, to a connecting bolt (35) connected to the sheet metal (34).

7. Device according to one of the preceding claims, in which at least one tension element (6) is rotatably mounted in the base body (1, 21, 31, 41).

8. Device according to one of the preceding claims, in which a plurality of tension elements (6) are arranged in at least one row.

9. Device according to one of the preceding claims, in which several rows of tension elements (6) are present.

10. Device according to claim 9, in which at least two of several rows run freely parallel to one another.

11. Device according to one of the preceding claims, in which the attack formation has at least one, preferably two, preferably facing away from each other undercuts.

12. The device according to claim 11, in which the at least one undercut is formed by the flank of a groove (10).

13. Device according to claim 11 or 12, in which, in the case of an undercut, both boundary surfaces adjacent to the undercut surface run parallel to one another.

14. Device according to claim 11 or 12, in which, in the case of two undercuts, both boundary surfaces adjacent to the undercut surfaces run in pairs parallel to one another.

15. Device according to one of the preceding claims, in which the base body (1, 21, 31) is designed like a strip.

6. Device according to one of the preceding claims, with a connecting device for connecting at least two base bodies (1), in particular at least two at least partially identically constructed base bodies (1), the connection being designed such that the base bodies, if necessary multiple times, next to one another and / or arranged one behind the other.

17. The device according to claim 16, in which the connection is designed such that the undercuts and / or grooves of two interconnected base bodies (1) are aligned with one another.

18. Device according to one of the preceding claims, in which the base body (1) and / or the length of the tension elements (6) is designed such that the front ends (5) of the tension elements (6) have a predetermined contour when resting in the pulling direction .

19. Device according to one of the preceding claims, in which at least one base body has a plurality of sections (32) which are flexibly connected to one another and each have at least one tension element (6).

20. Device according to one of the preceding claims, with a tension adapter (16) engaging behind the undercut.

21. The device according to claim 20, in which the pull adapter can selectively be brought into engagement with one of several undercuts.