Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Glenn Mark Krcek

Bruce Steven Shimanovski

Mircea M Ghiran

Erick W Rudaitis

Sanjay Mahasukhlal Shah

Romuald Gmurowski

George Thomas Winterhalter

John J Sniezek

Mark A Campbell

Alexander Michael Turley

Robert I Phillion

John W Scharlacken

Hydroforming apparatus includes in-die hydropiercing apparatus with easy and precise adjustment of the positioning of a backup plunger that is received in a die button and is positioned in a hydroforming position, a prepiercing position, a piercing position, and a slug ejecting position that may be outside the plunger or may be the hydroforming position. Wherein the plunger is required to be precisely positioned and held in the prepiercing position in the die button in order to obtain a desired prepiercing action without prematurely piercing the hydroformed part. The in-die hydropiercing apparatus has a plunger actuating hydraulic cylinder that moves the plunger to the different positions and a cam actuating hydraulic cylinder that positions a cam in determining the prepiercing position of the plunger. The cam actuator includes an adjusting device that provides for easily adjusting positioning of the plunger with the cam in the required prepiercing position and the cam with its hydraulic actuator also acts to hold the plunger in the prepiercing position thereby relieving the plunger actuating hydraulic cylinder of this duty.

In-die hydropiercing apparatus with prepiercing adjustment

A die button flush mounted in the cavity surface of a lower one of two hydroforming dies has a backup plunger received therein that forms a part of this surface when the plunger is in a hydroforming position. A slug ejector received in the lower die also forms a part of this surface and with a tubular part enclosed in the cavity formed by the dies, hydroforming fluid under pressure is supplied to the interior of the part and also to separately act on the plunger. The fluid pressure moves and holds the plunger in its hydroforming position while forming the part to the die cavity surface. The fluid pressure on the plunger is then exhausted allowing the fluid pressure in the part to stretch a portion of the part into the die button while also forcing the plunger to a position that limits this stretching to prevent piercing. The fluid pressure in the part is then reduced to a pressure just sufficient to pierce the stretched portion and the plunger is then allowed to further retract to a position allowing the reduced pressure to pierce a slug onto the plunger. The part is then removed from the die cavity and the plunger is returned to its initial position with the slug thereon where the slug is then ejected from the lower die through an opening in the lower die cavity surface.

Hydroforming, in-die hydropiercing and slug-ejecting method and apparatus

A method for cutting an 'O' ring retention groove around the cutting edge of a hydropiercing die button. A groove machining tool is given a convex curved end surface the radius of which is slightly less than or, at most, substantially equal to the tightest concave radius that the end surface will have to sweep through as the groove is cut. Consequently, an accurate, slightly curved groove bottom surface is created for the 'O' ring, while the machining tool will not bind as it moves through the tightest concave portion of the cutting path.

Method for machining an 'O' ring retention groove into a curved surface

A laser welding apparatus comprises a mount attached to a laser beam delivery system and a cylinder attached to the mount. A piston having first and second piston ends and a piston body sealingly and slidably engages with the cylinder dividing the cylinder into first and second piston chambers. The piston is slidable between an extended position and a retracted position and has a central axial bore through which a supplemental wire is fed. A wire supply provides supplemental wire to the first piston end and a delivery head attached to the second piston end delivers the supplemental wire proximate to a laser beam and a work-piece.

Welding apparatus and process

A teaching tool for programming a laser beam using a robot is provided. The teaching tool includes a sensor which emits a low energy laser beam to be focused on to a predetermined point on a masterwork piece, a photoelectric array associated with the sensor for receiving energization from the laser beam, a housing, a source of focused incandescent light so that a programmer can visually observe the point at which the laser beam is focused, a control and comparator circuit receiving signals from the photoelectric array to determined the focal length of the laser beam emitted by the sensor and a diode gate for effecting energization of a signal indicating that the low energy laser beam of said robot will effect optimize work on said workpieces.

Quick release teach tool

The present invention provides an apparatus and method of utilization of the same of tooling for a robot or the like for installing rocker arm assemblies to the cylinder banks of an engine. A preferred embodiment of the present invention includes jaws to grip the rocker arm assembly, a bolt runner to torque the rocker arm bolt and means to angularly float the jaws, allowing the rocker arm assembly to align itself with the engine cylinder bank push rod and valve spring.

Growing community of inventors

Sterling Heights, MI, United States of America

Glenn Mark Krcek