The invention relates to a method of fastening a rivet element to a workpiece, in particular to a sheet metal part, which has a preshaped hole provided for the reception of a rivet section of the rivet element and which is made planar at least in the region around the preshaped hole. Prior to the fastening process, the workpiece is positioned at a well-defined spacing from a contact surface of a die by means of at least one movably and/or elastically configured spacer of the die for the reshaping of the rivet section, so that a gap is formed between a wall of the hole and a punch of the die, which is provided for the reshaping of the rivet section. The rivet section is introduced into the gap in the course of the fastening process and is reshaped by the punch in order to engage behind the workpiece in the region of the hole.

A self-actuating tooling die located beneath an industrial press impact zone clamps a the tongue of an end ring side-to-side to hold it dimensionally stable during a pressing operation that clinches a nut to a hole in the tongue. The tooling die comprises a cone-shaped split collet fitted into a corresponding cone-shaped receptacle in the die housing. As the installation force of the press forces the collet into the receptacle, jaws of the collet grip the tongue a corresponding amount. At a pre-determined point of advancement, the collet bottoms out against a stop in the socket to hold the tongue in its pre-installation relaxed shape and size. A spring-loaded stepped pin, which reciprocates within an axial bore of the die, centers the nut and hole in the tongue during installation and later ejects the completed assembly.

A method of installing a push-in fastener includes the steps homing a floating tool assembly to a home position, the floating tool assembly carries a locating pin and a punch, releasing the floating tool assembly, positioning a workpiece at a target position, retrieving a fastener with the punch, engaging the workpiece with the locating pin which causes the floating tool assembly to move to a desired working position with respect to the workpiece, locking the floating tool assembly in the desired working position, retracting the locating pin, and advancing the punch to install the fastener in the workpiece.

A device for inserting an auxiliary joining part into a workpiece, having a punch pressing the joining part into a top of the workpiece. The joining part has a shaft pressed into the workpiece and a die contacting a bottom of the workpiece while the joining part is pressed in. The die has a contact region and non-circular aperture surrounded thereby. Radially outermost points of the aperture periphery lie on an imaginary circumscribed circle, and radially innermost points lie on an imaginary inscribed circle. The aperture periphery includes three projections protruding into and touching the circumscribed circle. A diameter of the inscribed circle is between 4% and 10% smaller than a maximum diameter of a circular circumference of the auxiliary joining part, and a diameter of the circumscribed circle is between 2% and 5% larger than this diameter.

A feeder device for a punch press moves nuts on the carrier strip from a supply reel into the feeder which then presents them for delivery to the workpiece insertion site. The punch of the press picks each individual fastener from the feeder and delivers it to a workpiece below where the punch presses the nut into the workpiece. The feeder only requires a press with downwardly applied force and requires no additional energy source for its operation other than that transmitted by the downward force of the press. A drive mechanism of the feeder is powered by a camming action against the press punch which rotates a fastener-engaging feed wheel to advance the carrier strip into and through the feeder. A bifurcated feed track separates fasteners from the carrier strip and delivers the loose fasteners into the feed wheel which positions them at a pickoff site.

The present invention relates to an apparatus for processing a workpiece, said apparatus comprising at least one pressing device having a first tool half and a second tool half that can be moved towards one another, in particular for reshaping and/or for press hardening the workpiece, and at least one setting device for fastening at least one functional element in a setting movement at a setting point to the workpiece, wherein the setting device is arranged at the first tool half or the second tool half. The setting device can be operated independently of the pressing device.