Arnold Umformtechnik Gmbh & Co. Kg

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft

Dominik Fröhlich

Andreas Philipp

Andreas Forster

Heiko Miller

Andreas Somnitz

Georg Vogel

Manuel Kaiser

Klaus Truetsch

Maximilian Felix Wilhelm

Patrick Rominger

The invention relates to a connection element for interconnecting at least two workpieces, having a shaft; a connection-element head, radially protruding beyond the external side of the shaft, at the one end of the shaft; a drive configuration on the connection-element head and a front shaft end, wherein in a holding portion of the shaft that emanates from the lower side of the connection-element head at least one pair of closed annular protrusions are disposed thereon, of which at least one annular protrusion is not completely disposed in a plane that runs perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the shaft; and the spacings between the two annular protrusions of the pair along the circumference are of dissimilar size, or the two annular protrusions of the pair of annular protrusions are disposed so as to be mutually parallel; wherein the front end of the shaft is configured as a tapered hole-forming portion, and wherein a maximum external diameter of the hole-forming portion is between 3% and 10% smaller, in particular 5% smaller, than a maximum external diameter of the annular protrusions.

Connection element, and method for connecting at least two workplaces

A connecting element, the use thereof and a method for connecting plate shaped workpieces are proposed. The connecting element comprises a multiplicity of closed encircling annular projections, which are arranged in such a way that the spacing between adjacent annular projections changes along a circumference or that adjacent annular projections are arranged parallel to one another or obliquely to the longitudinal axis. The connecting element is rotated and pressed into contact to produce a hole and, after the production of the hole, is subjected only to axial contact pressure and is then twisted to lock.

Connecting element, use and method

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Zweiflingen, Germany

Dominik Fröhlich