Press

Claim 1

A METAL-WORKING PRESS, COMPRISING A SUPPORTING FRAME, A BED AND TOP PLATE FIXEDLY MOUNTED ON THE FRAME IN VERTICALLY SPACED RELATION, A SLIDE CARRIED ON THE UNDERSIDE OF THE TOP PLATE AND LONGITUDINALLY MOVABLE WITH RESPECT TO THE BED IN A FIXED HORIZONTAL PLANE, A FIRST SET OF DIES CARRIED ON A PLURALITY OF RAMS MOUNTED ON THE BED FOR VERTICALLY MOVING SAID DIES WITH RESPECT TO THE SLIDE, A SECOND SET OF DIES MOUNTED ON THE SLIDE AND ADAPTED TO MATE WITH SAID FIRST SET OF DIES, MEANS FOR ACTUATING SAID RAMS FOR MOVING SAID FIRST SET OF DIES SELECTIVELY AND INDEPENDENTLY WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER AND WITH RESPECT TO SAID SECOND SET OF DIES INTO OPERATIVE ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID SECOND SET OF DIES INTO OPERATIVE ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID SECOND SET OF DIES TO EFFECT A PLURALITY OF WORK STEPS ON WORK-PIECES INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE TWO SETS OF DIES WHEN THE SLIDE IS MOVED INTO POSITION TO DISPOSE THE TWO SETS OF DIES IN VERTICAL ALIGNMENT, EACH OF THE DIES IN SAID SECOND SET BEING ADAPTED TO HOLD A WORK-PIECE ABOVE SAID FIRST SET OF DIES WHEREBY MOVEMENT OF THE SLIDE WILL CAUSE EACH OF THE DIES IN SAID SECOND SET TO MOVE THE WORK-PIECE CARRIED THEREIN FROM A POSITION OVERLYING ITS MATING DIE IN THE FIRST SET OF DIES TO A POSITION OVERLYING AN ADJACENT DIE IN SAID FIRST SET OF DIES, AND MEANS MOUNTED IN A FIXED POSITION ABOVE THE PLANE OF SAID TOP PLATE AND MOVABLE BETWEEN A RETRACTED POSITION ABOVE THE PLANE OF SAID SLIDE AND AN EXTENDING POSITION PROJECTING THROUGH SAID TOP PLATE AND SLIDE TO EJECT THE WORK-PIECES FROM SAID SECOND SET OF DIES, THE DIE IN THE SECOND SET OF DIES ADJACENT ONE END OF THE SLIDE MOVING ITS WORK-PIECE BEYOND THE EXTENT OF THE BED DURING THE SLIDE MOVEMENTS FOR EJECTION OF THE FINISHED WORK-PIECE FROM THE PRESS BY SAID MEANS.