Metal forming

Claim 1

METAL FORMING APPARATUS COMPRISING TWO DIE MEMBERS MOVABLE RECTILINEARLY TOWARD AND AWAY FROM EACH OTHER AND HAVING COOPEATIVE METAL FORMING SURFACES WHICH, FOR THE MOST PART, ARE AT SUBSTANTIAL ANGLES WITH RESPECT TO THE DIRECTION OF THE RELATIVE MOVEMENT OF THE DIE MEMBERS, MEANS APPLYING VIBRATIONS TO AT LEAST ONE OF SAID DIE MEMBERS SUBSTANTIALLY AT THE CENTER THEREOF AND IN DIRECTIONS PARALLEL TO THE DIRECTION IN WHICH SAID DIE MEMBERS ARE MOVABLE TOWARD AND AWAY FROM EACH OTHER, SAID VIBRATIONS BEING AT A FREQUENCY IN THE RANGE BETWEEN APPROXIMATELY 1 KC./SEC. AND 100 KC./SEC. AND AN AMPLITUDE SUFFICIENT TO IMPART PEAK ACCELERATIONS OF AT LEAST 1000 G. TO THE RELATED DIE MEMBER, AND MEANS EXERTING A STATIC FORCE URGING SAIS DIE MEMBERS TOWARD EACH OTHER WITH AN ACCELERATION FAR LESS THAN SAID PEAK ACCELERATIONS SO THAT SAID STATIC FORCE AND THE IMPCTS RESULTING FROM SAID SURFACES OF THE DIE MEMBERS TO THE CONFIGURATION OF THE LATTER WHILE SAID PEAK ACCELERATION ENSURE THAT AT LEAST THE METAL FORMING SURFACE OF SAID ONE DIE MEMBER IS ONLY IN INTERMITTENT AND RELATIVELY MOVABLE CONTACT WITH THE METAL TO VERY SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCE THE FRICTIONAL RESISTANCE TO FORMING OF THE METAL.