Apparatus for electric welding fasteners to automobile bodies

Claim 1

A SELF-LOADING WELDING GUN ASSEMBLY FOR WELDING SUCCESSIVE COMPONENTS TO A METAL SURFACE COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION: A SUPPORT HAVING MEANS PROVIDING A COMPONENT TRANSFER CHAMBER FOR RECEIVING SUCCESSIVE COMPONENTS FROM A SOURCE THEREOF, A SOURCE OF COMPONENTS CONNECTED TO SAID CHAMBER FOR SUCCESSIVELY DELIVERING COMPONENTS THERETO, ELECTRODE MEANS MOUNTED ON THE SUPPORT TO HOLD EACH SUCCESSIVE COMPONENT IN A WELDING POSITION SPACED FORWARDLY OF SAID CHAMBER, SAID ELECTRODE MEANS EXTENDING THROUGH SAID TRANSFER CHAMBER AND SHIFTABLE THEREIN TO LOAD SUCCESSIVE COMPONENTS ON THE ELECTRODE MEANS AND POSITION EACH IN THE AFORESAID WELDING POSITION, DOUBLE ACTING MOTIVE MEANS ON THE SUPPORT CONNECTED TO SAID ELECTRODE MEANS FOR SHIFTING THE SAME RELATIVE TO THE CHAMBER AS AFORESAID, MEANS ON THE SUPPORT CONNECTED TO SAID ELECTRODE MEANS AND OPERABLE TO MOMENTARILY RETRACT THE SAME REARWARDLY TO STRIKE AN ARC BETWEEN A COMPONENT CARRIED THEREBY AND A METAL SURFACE TO WHICH THE COMPONENT IS TO BE WELDED AND PLUNGE THE COMPONENT THROUGH THE ARC AGAINST SUCH METAL SURFACE, A SOURCE OF WELDING CURRENT CONNECTED TO THE ELECTRODE MEANS, AND A CONTROL SYSTEM CONNECTED TO SAID SOURCE OF WELDING CURRENT AND TO SAID MEANS FOR RETRACTING THE ELECTRODE MEANS AND TO SAID DOUBLE ACTING MOTIVE MEANS FOR SYNCHRONIZING AND CONTROLLING OPERATION THEREOF AND INCLUDING A SWITCH FOR INITIATING OPERATION OF EACH WELDING CYCLE.