A joint is formed in a stack of at least two sheets of light metal alloy, using a self-piercing rivet that is fully hollow. The rivet is coated at least along a portion of its bore by a lubricant and pierces the upper surface thereof and such that the shank deforms outwardly to interlock with the material but without penetration to the die side of the material. The outside diameter of the shank of the rivet is 5.4 mm or less. The die has a volume that is less than 60% or 70% of the effective solid volume of the rivet.

The present invention provides a small electric blind rivet setting device that is capable of being driven by a battery and that does not require a pathway for recovering the broken mandrels to be provided in the motor shaft. A recovery container 10 is provided in a tool housing 27 forward of an electric motor 13 in the axial direction, and a spindle 14, which rotates because of the rotation of a drive shaft 18 connected to the electric motor circumventing the recovery container, is connected so as to move a pulling head (30) in the axial direction. The positive rotation, stopping of rotation and reverse rotation of the electric motor are controlled by a pulling operation on a trigger and detecting the position of the pulling head in the axial direction.

A punch-riveting die comprises a basic body, which has a recess for forming an underside of a punch-rivet joint, the recess having a base and an annular wall. In a central region of the base, the die includes an annular radial-flow inhibiting device, which inhibiting device limits a radial material flow out of the inner region of the annular radial-flow inhibiting device.

A punch rivet for the attachment of individual components to one another of which at least one component is formed by a workpiece of composite material, the punch rivet having a flange of larger diameter, a rivet section of smaller diameter and a ring-like component contact surface at the side of the flange adjacent to the rivet section and surrounding the rivet section, wherein the rivet section has a ring surface at its free end for the piercing of the two workpieces, with the punch rivet having a central passage which extends over the full length of the punch rivet and wherein the punch rivet has an inwardly directed projection in the region of the rivet section 14.

A system 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.

A cylinder for storing a plurality of rings to be crimped, said cylinder comprising a base body including a distribution outlet, a main cylindrical body mounted so that it can rotate along a cylinder axis relative to said base body in a plurality of angular positions, said main cylindrical body comprising a plurality of sheaths which are parallel to one another and each suitable for accommodating a plurality of rings, each sheath being arranged so as to lead to said distribution outlet of said base body for a predetermined angular position of said main cylindrical body.

A method for making a screw hole in a workpiece including a plate-shaped portion includes: preparing an auxiliary member having a flat plate shape; forming, in the plate-shaped portion, a first pilot hole having a minor diameter smaller than a major diameter of the screw hole; forming, in the auxiliary member, a second pilot hole having a minor diameter smaller than the major diameter of the screw hole; fixing the auxiliary member to the plate-shaped portion so that the first pilot hole is concentric with the second pilot hole; and making the screw hole in the plate-shaped portion and the auxiliary member by inserting a tap in the first pilot hole and the second pilot hole.

Fastener delivery apparatus for automatically selecting and delivering fasteners such as rivets to a setting tool. The fasteners are pre-loaded in a package and dispense via at least one fastener delivery tube that interconnects the setting tool to a fastener feeder device. The fastener feeder device releases selected fasteners from the package into the delivery tube. The fasteners are transportable individually or in groups in the tube from the feeder device to the tool. A transfer station attached to the tool or the delivery tube transfers a fastener from the delivery apparatus into the tool, transfer station is adjacent to the tool so that a delivered fastener may be inserted by the transfer station into the tool and a second position in which it is clear of the tool so as to permit the tool or a portion thereof to move towards a workpiece to insert a smooth, rapid and reliable delivery of fasteners of various sizes and types to the nose of a setting tool in any particular order and provides all the fastener types for any particular work cycle.

A system and method determine a size and a shape for identical geodesic modules that are used to form a structure. The system and method may include analyzing input data regarding a size and a shape of the structure to be formed, and determining the size and the shape for each of the identical geodesic modules based on the size and the shape of the structure to be formed. The structure may include a framework including the identical geodesic modules. Each of the geodesic modules has a size and a shape that are the same as all of the other of the geodesic modules. A forming system and method position a framework and a covering skin of the structure in relation to a mandrel, and drill and rivet the framework to the covering skin with a plurality of operating heads.

In the invention, a joining means having a ram tool, a countertool and a holder with an opening to accommodate the ram tool or the countertool, is described. The two tools are arranged coaxial with each other at different ends of a C-bracket. The holder comprises at least one plane contact surface arranged on the outer surface of the holder, resting in contact with at least one plane face of the corresponding end of the C-bracket and detachably fastened thereto. Between the contact surface and the face, at least one interlay is arranged, determining the information and/or the distance of the contact surface from the face.