Automated trench manufacturing and assembly for attaching trim covers to a cushion assembly

A manufacturing assembly 100 having a die 102, the dire being a die bar, that defines a cavity in a cushion, the cavity being a channel 204. The die bar has an orifice 104 with a corresponding receptacle 106 disposed within, the receptacle being a hollow jacket. The receptacle receives a fastener 206, where an actuator 108 drives the fastener from the receptacle through the orifice into the channel. The method of forming a cushion assembly 200 is heating the die bar and engaging it with the cushion to form the channel. The fasteners are then driven from the receptacle by the actuators through the orifices into the cushion. The die bar is then disengaged, leaving the fasteners in the cushion. This can be part of a system where a plurality of die bars are mounted on at least one robotic arm 218. The fastener may secure a trim cover (Figure 10, 304) over the cushion. The die may be heated with a heating element 216, ideally an ultrasonic heater.