JPH0228005B2 - RENKETSUGUTSUKINOHAKUBANNOSEIZOHOHOTOSEIZOSOCHI - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for manufacturing a thin plate with a connecting device, such as a connecting device such as a nut or bolt, which is fixed to a thin plate material such as sheet metal. It is.

It is often necessary to connect and support other components to a component made of relatively thin plate material, such as sheet metal. Such thin sheets are generally too thin to allow screw holes to be drilled or tapped, so threaded female couplings or nuts are secured to such sheets by welding or other means. This allows threaded attachment of the male connector.

Conversely, it is often desirable to provide the sheet metal with a threaded male connector that protrudes beyond the female threaded connector to enable support of other components. In such a case,
The head of the bolt is fixed to the thin plate material by welding or the like.

Another known method for securing threaded connections to sheet metal is to fabricate a specially shaped clinch nut with a pilot projecting from one side. The leading portion is narrower than the rest of the nut and forms one or more shoulders on the nut. The leading part is
It is inserted into a preformed opening in the sheet material and is deformed outwardly into engagement with the sheet material at the periphery of the opening.

Another method of securing threaded connections to sheet metal is to provide a specially shaped piercing nut with a lead that forms an opening when it is pressed toward the sheet metal. formed into something. Using a specially shaped die on a press, the lead and the opening in the sheet material are deformed such that a fold-shaped engagement occurs between them. A specially manufactured through-nut with such a special shape is also designed to closely engage the thin plate material in order to distribute stress relatively uniformly and strengthen the joint between the nut and the thin plate material. The nut is provided on the main body with a shoulder section for holding the nut.

Both of the above-mentioned methods and the apparatus for securing connections to sheet metal have disadvantages such as the need for specially shaped and expensive nuts or connections. The methods and apparatus described above also tend to reduce the strength of the sheet metal due to the need to remove a significant amount of sheet metal to form an opening in the sheet metal to receive the coupling. When mass-produced, a large amount of scrap is produced.

The present invention makes it possible to attach standard connectors such as conventional nuts or bolts to thin plate materials, thereby eliminating the need for expensive special connectors and solving the problems described above. That is. In the embodiments described below, standard commercially available square nuts or bolts are secured, often without openings in the sheet metal, thereby eliminating or minimizing associated scrap.

The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a thin plate with a connector by fixing a connector to a thin plate material, and the method includes: (a) shearing a part of the thin plate material and attaching the connector to the opposite side of the thin plate material; (b) With the connecting tool positioned on one side of the thin sheet material with the two side edges along the two sheared portions, (c) deforming the thin sheet material between the sheared portions by pressing inward to integrally form a support band portion offset from the other portion of the thin sheet material on the thin sheet material between the sheared portions; Following the step of forming the support band, a portion of the connector is then compressed and deformed to form at least one of the sheared portions on at least one of the two side edges of the connector. characterized in that a protrusion is formed that engages with the sheared edge of the two sheared portions and prevents relative displacement of the connector with respect to the thin plate material in a direction away from the support band portion (first aspect). invention).

The support band portion formed in step (b) above is formed by pressing the connector into the thin plate material while the connector is positioned on one side of the thin plate material. Therefore, it closely engages one side of the connector at a position offset from other parts of the thin plate material, and prevents the connector from being pulled away from the thin plate material toward the support band. In addition, the above-mentioned step (c) involves partially compressing the connector to cause flow in the connector material to form the above-mentioned ridges, and the ridges allow the connector to form the above-mentioned ridges. It is prevented from being pulled away from the sheet material in a direction away from the support strap. In the sheet material, the connector is surrounded by the sheared edge of the sheared portion and the sheet material itself, so that no lateral displacement occurs.

The method of manufacturing a thin plate with a connector according to the present invention is such that all the engagement between the thin plate and the connector for restraining the connector in the thin plate is achieved by forging the thin plate after partially shearing the thin plate. and then local compressive deformation of the connector,
It is not necessary to use specially shaped connectors.

The above-mentioned supporting band part integral with the thin plate material engages with the coupling tool in a plane manner and has an extremely strong strength to resist the pulling force of the coupling tool from the thin plate material toward the side on which the supporting band part is formed. Make it bigger. In addition, this invention does not utilize openings in the thin plate material to secure the connector to the thin plate material, unlike conventional ones.
It has never been reported that the strength of the thin plate material is weakened by the opening for attaching the connector. Furthermore, as will be described later, in many cases it is not required to form an opening in a thin plate material at all and no scrap occurs, and even in the case of forming an opening in a thin plate material, for example, there is no need to form an opening in a thin plate material. For the purpose of protruding the threaded part of a bolt onto a thin plate material, or when the connecting tool is a nut, for connecting another member to a thin plate with a nut, for passing a bolt screwed into the nut, etc. Since the same opening is formed, there is no need to form an opening in the sheet material that would increase the amount of scrap.

The step of shearing a part of the thin plate material to form a pair of sheared parts is independent of the step of forming a support band part by deforming the thin plate material and the subsequent step of forming a protrusion by locally compressing deformation of the connector. (For example, when an opening 30 shown in FIGS. 4-6 and described later is formed in advance in the thin plate material, a part of the thin plate material may be sheared at the same time.) However, if these steps are performed consecutively, the thin plates with connectors can be manufactured all at once using a single device. In addition, the protrusions formed on the side edges of the connector are
Of course, it is desirable to form it into something that firmly engages the thin plate material. Therefore, the method for manufacturing a thin plate with a connecting tool according to the second invention is a method for manufacturing a thin plate with a connecting tool by fixing the connecting tool to a thin sheet material, the method comprising: (a) directing the thin plate toward one side of the thin sheet material; A part of the thin plate material is sheared under a state in which the connecting tool is pressed, and the thin plate material is
forming sheared portions along two opposing side edges of the connector; (b) deforming the thin plate material between the two sheared portions by further pressing the connector; (c) Following the step of forming the support band, a portion of the connector is then compressed and deformed to form the support band offset from other parts of the plate; A protrusion is formed on the two side edges to hold the sheared edges of both the sheared parts and prevent relative displacement of the connector with respect to the thin plate material.

Next, the apparatus for manufacturing a thin plate with a connector according to the present invention is as follows:
This is a device for manufacturing a thin plate with a connector by fixing a connector to a thin plate material, and it has a pair of dies that are movable relative to each other in the direction, and between which the connector is attached to the thin plate material. A pair of pressable dies, a moving means for forcibly moving the dies in the mutual direction, and a part of the thin plate material can be sheared along two opposing side edges of the connector between the two dies. and a molding surface provided on the die, which compresses and deforms a portion of the connector between them when the two dies are moved as much as possible relative to each other in the direction of approaching each other. A shape is set on the two side edges of the connecting tool to form a protrusion that engages with the thin plate material shearing portion by the cutting means and restrains the position of the connecting tool relative to the thin plate material. and a molding surface.

This manufacturing apparatus is used to manufacture a thin plate with a connecting tool by placing a connecting tool on one surface of a thin plate material between both dies and moving both dies relative to each other in the direction. It is appropriate to operate the cutting means from the state where the connecting tool is pressed against the thin plate material between both dies and positioned, and then by bringing both dies closer together, first the above-mentioned support band part is cut into the thin plate material. , and then bring both dies as close as possible to form the ridges on the two opposite side edges of the connector using the molding surfaces.

The cutting means for shearing a part of the thin plate material is
It can be attached to one of the dies in the following manner while not interfering with the formation of the protrusion by the molding surface. That is, the cutting means is constituted by a pair of cutting members supported by one die so as to be swingable in a direction in which the protrusion is formed in a protruding manner by compression of a portion of the connector by the molding surface; A spring is provided on one of the dies to oscillate the cutting member into a cutting position. In this way, when the protrusions are formed on the two opposite side edges of the connector, the cutting member is pushed by the protrusions and oscillates, so it does not get in the way of forming the protrusions, and also allows for the required cutting. The working position is ensured by the rocking bias provided by the spring.

Forming the protrusion on the side edge of the connector to hold the sheared edge of the sheared part of the thin plate as in the manufacturing method according to the second invention is achieved by setting the shape of the molding surface. It can be achieved.

Other features and advantages of the invention are detailed in the description of the embodiments below.

1-13 of the drawings show several embodiments of a thin plate with a connector and an apparatus for manufacturing the same manufactured according to the invention. Although the illustrated embodiment uses a conventional square nut or square bolt as the connector, it is understood that other connectors having other shapes may be used, as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art.
Can be used.

1-3, a coupling sheet 10 is shown having a female coupling 12 secured to the sheet material 14. As shown in FIGS. Before being fixed to the sheet material 14, the connector 12 is a simple and inexpensive square nut having a center hole 32, as shown by phantom line 12a in FIG.
The sheet material 14 has an integral support strap 16 which is stepped and offset relative to the surface of the rest of the sheet material 14.
The stepped offset of the orthotic portion is obtained by shearing the sheet material 14 along both side edges 18 of the connector 12, as indicated by reference numeral 20. Both side edges 18 of the connector 12 are such that the material of the connector flows outward and engages the side edges 18 of the connector 12 in a hugging manner.
so that a pair of ridges 22 spaced apart from each other are formed, and a pair of overhanging lips 21 are formed along both sheared edges 20 of the sheet material 14; It is being transformed.

The side edges of the support strap portion 16 are also directed towards the connector 12 and towards the connector 1, as indicated by the reference numeral 24.
It is deformed slightly towards the outer peripheral surface of 2,
The same-side edge 24 also holds the handle connector 12 in a restrained manner. In order to enable bolts, studs, or screws to be screwed into the center hole 32 of the connector 12 when connecting and attaching other members (not shown) to the thin plate 10 with connectors, holes are provided in the center hole 32 of the connector 12. Correspondingly aligned openings 30 are punched or otherwise punched into the orthotic portion 16.

FIGS. 4-6 show a thin plate 40 with a connector, in which a male connector 42 is secured to the thin plate 14. As shown in FIGS. The original form of the coupling 42 is a simple, inexpensive square bolt having a head 44 and a threaded thread 46. The original shape of the head 44 is shown by an imaginary line 44a. The head 44 is secured to the sheet material 14 by means similar to those described for the female connector 12, and the threaded thread 46 is attached to the opening 3 in the support strap 16.
It is projected through 0. The screw rod part 46 is
It is also possible to attach the connector 42 in a state where it projects in the opposite direction to that shown in FIG. 6, and in this case, the opening 30 of the support band portion 16 becomes unnecessary. Connectors 42 are secured to sheet metal 14 by means similar to those described for connectors 12 with reference to Figures 1-3, and therefore references similar to those used in Figures 1-3 will be used. Numbers are also used in Figures 3-6 to avoid repetitive explanation.

The embodiments illustrated in Figures 1-3 and 4-6 do not require any special shapes or pilots for the connectors, but rather standard threaded connectors. enable the use of Such standard couplings are approximately half the cost of many specially shaped through-type couplings. It has also been discovered that the strength of the coupling joints in the illustrated plate with couplings is superior to the strength of the coupling joints in many prior art designs. In particular, the pull-off strength of the joint, that is, the strength that withstands pulling the connector upwards from the thin plate material as seen in Figures 1 and 2 and 4 and 5 of the drawings, is particularly important for many conventional thin plates with connectors. It has been found that the strength is significantly greater than that in Such an improvement is based on the complete and restrictive engagement of the laminates with the two side edges of the coupling and the fact that the support strip 16 runs entirely along one side of the coupling. be done. In addition, the push-off strength of the joint, that is, the strength that withstands pushing the connector downward away from the thin plate material as seen in Figures 1 and 2 and 4 and 5 of the drawings, is also lower than that of the conventional thin plate with connectors. It was found that the intensity was higher than that.

7-13 illustrate an exemplary embodiment of an apparatus for manufacturing sheet metal with connectors according to the invention. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that in addition to the illustrated example of manufacturing equipment, other similar equipment may also be used.

The illustrated manufacturing apparatus 60 includes a punch section 62, which is shown in a slightly lowered position in FIG. 12, and an anvil section 64. The punch section 62 is the same section 6.
2 and a retaining member 68 which slidably supports a circular punch 70 and a tubular drive member 72. It has a hole 69 along the axial direction for this purpose. Drive member 72
has a die portion 74 at the lower end as seen in the drawing,
The drive member 72 is held within the hole 69 by a retaining member 76 that allows limited reciprocating movement of the drive member 72 and disables rotational displacement. punch 70
is in contact with the inner end surface of the hole 69 at its upper end as viewed in FIG. The driving member 72 is urged to move in the direction of pulling out from the hole 69 by a compression spring 78,
As a result, the driving member 72 performs a punch separating action as described later.

The point of action of the punch part 62 and therefore the drive member 7
In order to be able to adjust the stroke of the drive member 7
On top of 2 is an adjustment nut 1 that can be adjusted forward and backward with a screw thread.
16 are provided. A locking nut 117 is engaged with the adjusting nut 116 in order to maintain the axial position of the nut 116 on the drive member 72.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 8, a pair of holding springs (plate springs) 115 located opposite each other on the drive member 72 elastically grip both sides of the female connector 12, as will be described later. The connector 12 is positioned in proper alignment with the anvil 64. Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 5, 6, and 9, the male connector 42
A second pair of mutually opposed holding springs (plate springs) 118 is used which elastically grips both sides of the holder. The latter retaining spring 118 is the former retaining spring 11.
5, and the retaining spring 118 is
Both sides of the connector 42 are gripped only when the head 44 is in its original shape 44a shown in FIG. 5 without interfering with the formation of the protrusion 22.
Similar retaining springs may be used to grip couplings with heads having more than four sides.

The anvil portion 64 includes a fixed die 84 having a die face 86. The die portion 74 and the fixed die 84 are each spaced apart from each other by 1.
It has shoulder portions 75, 85 facing toward each other, and the shoulder portions 75, 85
As shown in FIG. 13, both edges of the connector are deformed to form the ridges 22 (see FIGS. 2 and 5). A pair of die blades 88 serving as cutting means are swingably connected to the fixed die 84 by a pair of pivot pins 90 . Fixed dice 84
includes a pair of integral shoulders 114 that slidably abut corresponding surfaces 112 of the die blade 88;
It is equipped with Therefore, the vertical force acting on the die blade 88 is directly transmitted to the fixed die 84 and is not absorbed by the pin 90. As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the die blade 88 is urged into a position adjacent the die surface 86 by a pair of compression springs 92. The fixed die 84 also has a through hole 96 along the axial direction, and this through hole 96 is connected to the hole 11 in the adjustment screw 119 provided in the anvil part 64.
6', and the punch 70
It is formed to receive the thin plate material punching waste 102 removed by the punch 70, and is provided to discharge the thin plate material punching waste 102 removed by the punch 70.

For purposes of explanation, the operation of the illustrated apparatus 60 will be described when it is used to attach a female coupling to a sheet of material in substantially one action. When the same device 60 is used for attaching a male coupling, the same operating conditions can be used to attach the coupling, with a few exceptions described below.

10 and 11, an automatic coupler feeder 140 is shown which may be used with device 60 in place of the retaining springs described above. In this automatic coupling device 140, a coupling supply chute 142 sequentially transports a large number of female couplings 12 to a coupling carrying mechanism 144 by gravity or air pressure. A retractable pin 148, which can be actuated by any suitable means, shuts off the supply of couplings until the coupling carrying mechanism 144 is emptied.

The coupler carrying mechanism 144 has an opening 150 having a shape corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of the coupler 12, and the coupler 12 is quickly brought into the correct position by this opening 150 and aligned with the die portion 74 and the fixed die 84. I am forced to do it. A large number of balls 152, which are biased to move by springs 156, are attached to the coupling device 1.
The connector 12 is partially extended into the opening 150 to support the connector 12 until the drive member 72 is engaged with the connector 2. When the coupling 12 is pushed downward, the spring 156 is compressed and the ball 152 is retracted, causing the coupling 12 to engage the sheet material 14 through the aperture 150, as described below.

Similar feeding devices can be used to automatically feed male couplings 42 to manufacturing equipment 60, as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art. An automatic feeding device for such male couplings is the chute 142.
With a longitudinal slot capable of receiving the threaded portion 46 with a considerable chute, this slot allows the head 44 of the male coupling 42 to be inserted in the same manner as described above for the female coupling 12. make it possible to transport. A carrying mechanism corresponding to the coupling carrying mechanism 144 is also provided with a vertical slot at the joint with the chute 142 to provide a clearance for the threaded thread 46.

A method of manufacturing a thin plate with a connector according to the present invention will be explained with reference mainly to FIGS. 12 and 13. The sheet material 14 is placed on the anvil part 64 such that the coupling area to be formed is located directly below the punch part 62. The connector 12 is attached to the drive member 72 using the punch 7 when it is desired to form the opening 30.
0 through the center hole 32 and loaded. The coupling device 12 can be loaded into the manufacturing device 60 manually as shown in FIG.
This can also be done by an automatic feeding mechanism as shown in FIG.

Ram 66 is then further actuated to drive punch portion 62 downwardly, thereby moving punch 70 until it forms opening 30 and retaining member 68 engages drive member 72. From the moment the die portion 74 connects to the connector 12
is pressed against the thin plate material 14, and the forging process begins.
Opening 3 with a larger diameter than the inner diameter of the center screw hole 32
0, such an opening 30 is formed in advance in the thin plate material 14. The punching debris 102 resulting from the punching formation of the aperture 30 is removed from the through hole 96.
It falls inside and is ejected. Thereafter, the die portion 74 directs the connector 12 toward the sheet material 14 so that the tips or angles of both side edges 18 of the connector 12 cooperate with the inner edges of the die blade 88 to shear the sheet material 14 along the side edges 18. Press with enough force to make an incision. A force is subsequently applied to the connector 12 through the sheet material 14 so that the support strap 16 is biased into close and uniform engagement with the surface of the connector 12.

Once the support band portion 16 contacts the shoulder portion 85 of the fixed die 84, the connector 12 and the support band portion 16
are further deformed between the shoulders 75 and 85, and the material of the connector 12 begins to flow outward, causing the ridge 22 to engage the sheared edge 20 of the thin plate 14 in a hugging manner. is formed. As the protrusion 22 is formed, the die blade 88
Rock outward as shown. Support band part 16
The subsequent deformation of the connector 12 also bends the sheared edge 20 of the sheet material 14 towards the fixed die 84 to form the flared lip 21 shown in FIGS. 2 and 5. . As a result of the above deformation, a portion of the support strap portion 16 is also deformed so as to engage with both side edges 18 of the connector 12.

When the punch 70 is retracted, the drive member 72 restrains the coupling 12 to assist in pulling the punch 70 away from the center hole 32. Punch part 62
With subsequent retraction, the drive member 72 is raised and the coupling 14 can be removed.

The apparatus and method for attaching the male connector 42 to the sheet material 14 are also similar to those described above. However, in the case of the male connector 42, the head 4
Judging from the fact that the threaded rod portion 46 protrudes from 4,
Preferably, the apertures 30 in the support strap 16 are pre-drilled for the insertion of the threaded rods 46, and then the connector slats 40 are manufactured in a manner similar to that described above. However, when the connector 42 is arranged so that the threaded rod part 46 projects away from the support band part 16 (downward in FIGS. 4 and 5), the above-mentioned pre-drilling is not necessary.

If desired, the area of sheet metal surrounding the coupling is
It can also be embossed so that the sheet metal and one side of the connector are in an equal height and substantially coplanar relationship. Such an embossing process can be performed prior to fixing the connector to the thin sheet material, or it can be performed at the same time as fixing the connector using a specially formed die surface.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a thin plate with a connecting device manufactured according to the present invention, in which a female type connecting device is fixed to the thin plate material. FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing another example of a thin plate with a connecting device manufactured according to the present invention, in which a male type connecting device is fixed to the thin plate material. FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5--5 in FIG. 4. FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line 6--6 in FIG. 4. FIG. 7 is a front view showing an embodiment of the apparatus for manufacturing a thin plate with a connector according to the present invention, for manufacturing a thin plate with a connector by fixing the connector to a thin plate material. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a portion of the manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 7, showing a retaining spring mechanism for gripping the female connector. FIG. 9 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 8, illustrating the retaining spring mechanism for gripping the male coupling. FIG. 10 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing a coupling supply mechanism that can be attached to the manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 7 together with a part of the manufacturing apparatus. Figure 11 shows 11- in Figure 10.
11 is a view from arrow 11. FIG. 12 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 7 together with a thin plate material and a connecting tool before the forging process. Figure 13 shows
FIG. 13 is a partially enlarged vertical cross-sectional view of the manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 12, showing the thin plate material and the connector at the final stage of the forging process. 10... Thin plate with connector, 12... Female connector, 14... Thin plate material, 16... Support band portion, 18...
... side edge, 20 ... sheared edge, 21 ... lip-shaped part,
22... Projection, 30... Opening, 40... Thin plate with connector, 42... Male connector, 44... Head, 4
6... Screw part, 60... Manufacturing device, 62... Punch part, 64... Anvil part, 66... Press device, 6
8... Holding member, 69... Hole, 70... Punch,
72... Drive member, 74... Die portion, 75...
... Shoulder, 76... Holding member, 78... Compression spring, 84... Fixed die, 85... Shoulder, 86
... Dice surface, 88 ... Dice blade (cutting means), 90 ... Pivot pin, 92 ... Compression spring, 96 ... Through hole, 115, 118 ... Holding spring, 140 ... Connector automatic supply device , 142...
Connector supply chute, 144... Connector carrying mechanism, 148... Pin, 150... Opening, 152...
...Ball, 156...Spring.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A method for manufacturing a thin plate with a connector by fixing the connector to the thin plate, the method comprising: (a) shearing a part of the thin plate and applying the connector to the thin plate; (b) forming a sheared portion along two opposing side edges, and (b) thinning the connecting device with the connecting device positioned on one side of the thin plate material with the two side edges along the two sheared portions; (c) deforming the thin plate material between the two sheared parts by pressing into the plate material, and integrally forming a supporting band part offset from other parts of the thin plate material between the sheared parts; Following the step of forming the support band, a portion of the connector is then compressed and deformed to form at least one of the sheared portions on at least one of the two side edges of the connector. A coupling device, characterized in that it forms a protrusion that engages with the shearing edge of one shearing section and prevents relative displacement of the coupling device with respect to the thin plate material in a direction away from the supporting band section. Method of manufacturing thin plate with attached. 2. A method of manufacturing a thin plate with a connector by fixing the connector to the thin plate, which method includes: (a) shearing a part of the thin plate while pressing the connector against one side of the thin plate; and to the thin plate material,
forming sheared portions along two opposing side edges of the connector; (b) deforming the thin plate material between the two sheared portions by further pressing the connector; (c) Following the step of forming the support band, a portion of the connector is then compressed and deformed to form the support band offset from other parts of the plate; A method for manufacturing a thin plate with a connector, characterized in that a protrusion is formed on the second side edge to hold the sheared edges of both the sheared parts and prevent relative displacement of the connector with respect to the thin plate material. 3. A device for manufacturing a thin plate with a connector by fixing the connector to the thin plate material, which is a pair of dies that are movable relative to each other, and between which the connector is attached to the thin plate material. A pair of dies are provided to be able to press the dies, a moving means for forcibly moving the dies in the mutual direction, and a part of the thin plate material is sheared between the two dies along two opposing side edges of the connector. When the two dies are moved as much as possible relative to each other in the direction of approaching each other, a portion of the connector is compressed and deformed between a cutting means that can be provided and a forming surface provided on the die. A shape is set on the two side edges of the connecting tool to form a protrusion that engages with the thin plate material shearing portion by the cutting means and restrains the position of the connecting tool relative to the thin plate material. 1. A thin plate manufacturing apparatus with a connecting tool, characterized in that the forming surface has a connecting part. 4. In the manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, the cutting means is supported by one die so as to be swingable in a direction in which the protrusion is formed in a protruding manner by compression of a portion of the connector by the molding surface. An apparatus for manufacturing a thin plate with a connecting tool, the apparatus comprising a pair of cutting members having a connecting member and a spring provided on one of the dies for swinging and biasing both cutting members into a cutting position. 5. In the manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, the shape of the molding surface is such that the protrusion formed by compression of a portion of the connector by the molding surface is a sheared end of the thin plate sheared portion by the cutting means. Apparatus for manufacturing thin plates with couplings configured to hold the edges.