Investigation on the forming force and surface quality during ultrasonic-assisted incremental sheet forming process

The integration of ultrasonic vibration into the incremental sheet forming (ISF) process can significantly reduce the forming force and bring other benefit     

Effects of forming parameters on temperature in frictional stir incremental sheet forming

Frictional stir Incremental sheet forming (ISF) is a new technology used to fabricate parts of hard-to-form materials without using heating equipment. Thus far, limited information is known about the effects of main forming parameters, except spindle speed of the tool, on the temperature of formed sheet in friction-stir ISF. The effects of six forming parameters, namely, sheet thickness, tool vertical step, tool diameter, spindle speed, feed rate, and wall angle of the formed part, were identified using the design of experiment of orthogonal array, analysis of response tables and graphs, and analysis of variance. Results show that spindle speed, feed rate, sheet thickness, and tool vertical step significantly affect the temperature of the sheet. In addition, the temperature of the sheet is significantly increased by increasing sheet thickness, tool vertical step, and spindle speed but significantly decreased with increasing tool feed rate.

     

An approach to eliminate stepped features in multistage incremental sheet forming process: Experimental and FEA analysis

Incremental sheet forming (ISF) is a recently developed manufacturing technique. In ISF, forming is done by applying deformation force through the motion of Numerically controlled (NC) single point forming tool on the clamped sheet metal blank. Single Point Incremental sheet forming (SPISF) is also known as a die-less forming process because no die is required to fabricate any component by using this process. Now a day it is widely accepted for rapid manufacturing of sheet metal components. The formability of SPISF process improves by adding some intermediate stages into it, which is known as Multi-stage SPISF (MSPISF) process. However during forming in MSPISF process because of intermediate stages stepped features are generated. This paper investigates the generation of stepped features with simulation and experimental results. An effective MSPISF strategy is proposed to remove or eliminate this generated undesirable stepped features.     

Effects of three parameters on forming force of the single point incremental forming process

This research has examined the effects of three parameter groups on the forming force of single point incremental forming (SPIF) process. The parameters under study include the material types (sheet aluminum, brass and copper), the forming angles (30°, 40° and 50°), and the tool revolution speeds (200, 400 and 600 rpm). The metal forming was carried out using a spherical edge tool which was pressed onto the metal surface to form work pieces of truncated pyramid shape. In the experiment, the forming forces were measured and analyzed to determine an optimal parameter combination, with regard to the material type, forming angle and revolution speed, for the SPIF process. The experimental results showed that all three parameter groups exerted varying influences over the forming force of the SPIF process. The findings indicated that the sheet brass exhibited the highest force value and that the smaller forming angle contributed to the greater forming force. In addition, the higher tool revolution speed resulted in the lower forming force.

     

A novel approach for temperature control in ISF supported by laser and resistance heating

Aeronautical applications often require small batches of large-scale sheet metal parts made from titanium and its alloys. Due to the low formability of titanium at room temperature, warm forming processes are necessary. Incremental sheet metal forming (ISF) is suitable for production of prototypes and small batches as well as large-scale parts. A short review of the experimental work done by international scientists in the field of warm ISF including stationary and moved temperature sensors will be presented mostly applied from the backside of the sheet metal. The present paper shows a new approach for a tool setup including a thermocouple inside of the tool. Hence, the sensor for temperature measurement was moved with the forming zone. Furthermore, a suitable closed loop control including a PID controller will be presented. The characteristics of the controller will be discussed. By means of two different warm ISF processes (ISF with resistance heating and laser-assisted ISF), the applicability of the developed setup will be analysed and evaluated. It will be shown that the experimental setup is capable to ensure minimal temperatures needed to ensure adequate formability of Ti grade 5.     

Formability evaluation of a pure titanium sheet in the cold incremental forming process

Owing to its ability to deform a sheet metal locally, the single point incremental forming (SPIF) process produces larger deformations as compared to the conventional forming processes. In the present study, we investigated the effect of some process parameters – pitch, tool diameter, feed rate and friction at the interface between the tool and blank – on the formability of a commercially-pure titanium sheet. Trends between the process parameters and formability are presented in this paper.     

Experimental and numerical analysis of hydrodynamic deep drawing assisted by radial pressure at elevated temperatures

Nowadays, due to the demand for lightweight construction and fuel consumption reduction, especially in automotive and aerospace industries, the use of aluminum alloys has drawn much attention. Nevertheless, poor formability at room temperature is the main drawback of using these alloys. To overcome the problem, the work material is formed at elevated temperatures. In the present paper, Hydrodynamic Deep Drawing assisted by Radial Pressure (HDDRP) process has been selected over other forming methods. The aim of the study is to investigate the applicability of this process in conjunction with warm forming. For this purpose, experimental and numerical attempts have been made on warm forming of flat-bottom cylindrical cups in isothermal condition. At first, a series of warm hydroforming experiments were performed to determine the effect of tool temperature and forming speed on the thickness distribution of the final part and on the required forming load. Then, a set of finite element analyses (FEA) were performed using ABAQUS explicit to extend the findings. The Response Surface Method (RSM) was then used to build the relationship between the input parameters such as temperature and forming speed, and output responses including minimum part thickness and maximum punch force. It is demonstrated that the required forming force was decreased with increase in punch speed and tool temperature. Additionally, minimum thickness of the part is increased with increasing temperature and decreasing punch speed. Studying the Limiting Drawing Ratio (LDR) revealed that elevating the forming temperature causes reduction in LDR, while rising the punch speed leads to a slight enhancement in it. For the evaluation of part dimensional changes after forming, springback analysis was done via studying the through-thickness hoop stress distribution. It is found that using warm isothermal HDDRP in high forming rate results in more uniform stress distribution and lower level of stress and so a better springback behavior.     

Numerical simulation of electric hot incremental sheet forming of 1050 aluminum with and without preheating

Incremental sheet forming (ISF) consists of deforming the sheet, through a spherical punch, punctually and progressively until it reaches the desired geometry. Compared to the conventional process, the ISF can achieve much higher levels of formability. But the stresses and residual strains are often pushed to the limit on the path, producing a piece with brittle behavior, which is not desirable for applications in engineering. To work around this inconvenience, one solution would be to perform the conformation at high temperatures, a process known in engineering as hot forming. This study aims to evaluate the behavior of the state of stresses and strains in the hot incremental sheet forming of 1050 aluminum alloy, with and without pre-heating, using the finite element method. This behavior has been studied by numerical simulation, using the software RADIOSS, which has a suitable formulation for inserting the effects of temperature and strain rate in the material. The results show a decline in the forces for electric hot incremental sheet forming preheated (EHISFP) compared to the electric hot incremental sheet forming (EHISF). Moreover, for these same cases, there was a gain in relation to the geometric precision on average more than 4%.     

Investigating the temperature from friction stir in the SPIF process via an infrared imager

Single point incremental forming (SPIF) is a highly flexible forming process for sheet metal. It has low production costs be-cause the process does not use a die. It is suitable for prototyping and made-to-order production. Currently, the SPIF process employs the concept of heat to increase formability. The idea is to generate heat from friction caused by sliding the tool against the workpiece, called “friction stir”. This research proposed to study the behavior of temperature that occurs when affected by the tool rotation speed and the feed rate, which are both variables affecting friction stir. This research adopted the method of detecting temperature with infrared cameras and online recording data. The camera sensor received data as 8-bit images containing data from 0 to 255. The value of each position represented the temperature level. In this research, the mini-mum-maximum temperature range was set at 80–300 degrees Celsius for forming the hot dipped zinc coat roll steel sheet at a thickness of 0.2 mm using the SPIF process. The variable parameters were the tool rotation speed and feed rate. The tool rotation speed was categorized as high and used no sliding friction with feed rates of 500, 1000, 1500 mm/min. Concerning the results analysis, this study used the relationships between tool rotational speed and feed rate, shown as relative sliding velocity. The results showed with significance that the increase of the maximum temperature in the process corresponded to an increase in relative sliding velocity using a tool rotational speed and feed rate with no relative sliding velocity. The process temperature was close to room temperature. Relative sliding velocity at approximately 6000 and 10000 mm/min caused a maximum temperature of approximately 160–180 and 200–250 degrees Celsius, respectively. Another issue found in the experiment was that not turning the tool reduced the formability of the process.

     

Simulation and analysis of serrated chip formation in cutting process of hardened steel considering ploughing-effect

A realistic finite element model considering the ploughing effect of cutting edge fillet was developed in high speed machining. Taking the hardened tool steel AISI D2 as the object of research, the cutting force and chip morphology were reasonably analyzed and compared with the actual results of cutting experiments, which verified the correctness of the model. Then, based on the model, the formation process of single serrated tooth was analyzed, while the effects of cutting heat and temperature field, material hardness and cutting speed on chip formation were explored. The research results indicate that: (1) The ploughing-effect has a great impact on the feed force, and for hardened tool steel AISI D2, the stagnation angle of 30o is more appropriate. (2) Also, stress concentration appears and shear slipping occurs along the shear plane in the process of serrated chip formation. The strain rate on the shear slipping surface is much greater than other places and the temperature gradient perpendicular to the shear plane is relatively higher. (3) The cutting force becomes larger with increasing the hardness value of workpieces, which causes the chip to more likely to produce serrated chips. (4) The fluctuation of cutting force is more significant as the cutting speed increases, which puts forward higher requirements for the tool and machine tool.     

切削过程三维温度及热应力分析

建立了切削过程三维温度及热应力模型,整体模拟了金属的切削过程,得到不同切削速度下的切削力,工件变形区的应变、应力分布以及切削温度的分布,并对切削速度以及刀具前角对切削温度分布的影响进行分析.结果表明,提高切削速度对于减小主切削力,降低切削温度是有利的.三维仿真能更加真实地揭示刀具和工件的切削状态.     

Thermography in incremental forming processes at elevated temperatures

Temperature measurement is essential for several forming processes at elevated temperatures. It serves to determine and control the workpiece temperature. Thermography as a non-contact-based technology offers the possibility to capture thermograms of complete workpieces without any time-offset. However, the application of thermography requires the knowledge of the fundamentals of radiation thermometry, in particular the emissivity. This paper presents the results of the application of thermography in incremental sheet forming (ISF) with Joule heating and radial–axial ring rolling as a bulk forming process. Using thermography for the determination of the temperature of the forming zone allows for a real-time closed loop control in ISF with Joule heating. Additionally, the results of the temperature measurement of the surface temperature of radial–axial rolled rings are presented, which can be used as a starting point to make a forecast of the rings’ dimensions in cold state.     

Force-based failure criterion in incremental sheet forming

In incremental sheet forming, a hemispherical tool deforms a sheet moving along a predefined path. The process, useful for making prototypes or small series, is characterized by high flexibility and development times and costs reduction. The part feasibility is strongly influenced by the adopted tool path and, in particular, tool path corrections are requested to obtain the final geometry and to prevent the sheet rupture. To save time and costs, sheet failure criteria are therefore essential. In this paper, a real time force-based sheet rupture criterion is presented and tested on steel, aluminum, and titanium alloys. In particular, it will be shown that the sheet rupture can be related with the tangential forming force, the geometry of the component to be realized, and the sheet material characteristics.     

Effect of variations in the riveting process on the quality of riveted joints

Sheet metal parts are widely used in the assembly of aircraft. The most common method of assembling sheet metal parts is through riveting. Failure of a rivet can have severe consequences in terms of loss of human lives and money. There are many parameters associated with a riveting process that directly affect the quality of rivets including squeeze force, rivet length, rivet diameter, and hole diameter tolerance. Incorrect selection or variations in these parameters could induce excessive residual stresses that result in stress concentration sites and initiate cracks, and also result in improper rivet head deformation leading to loose rivets. This paper presents a study of the effect of the aforementioned riveting parameters on the quality of a formed rivet using finite element simulation. The study was part of a larger project carried out for the local aircraft industry and hence, uses the inch system. The research is conducted on a 1/8″ (0.125″) diameter rivet and a 0.064″ thick aluminum sheet. The results indicate that under normal variations in the riveting process parameters, when using the recommended countersunk depth of 0.042″ for rivet hole, most rivets that are formed will not meet the quality requirements. This is primarily due to the existence of a gap between the formed rivet and the hole. Decreasing the countersunk depth to 0.032″ allows for a higher range of hole and rivet diameter tolerances, as well as an increase in the range of squeeze force that can be applied without violating the quality requirements.     

The formability of annealed and pre-aged AA-2024 sheets in single-point incremental forming

The formability of AA-2024 sheets, an aerospace grade material, in the annealed and pre-aged conditions has been investigated in the single-point incremental forming (SPIF) process. The major operating parameters, namely step size, tool radius, and forming speed, of SPIF process were varied over wide ranges, and their effect on the formability was quantified through a response surface method called as central composite rotational design. It was found that the interaction of step size and tool radius is very significant on the formability. Moreover, a variation in the forming speed does not affect the formability of annealed AA-2024 sheet. However, the formability of pre-aged AA-2024 sheet decreases with the increase in the forming speed. Furthermore, the annealed sheet shows higher formability than the pre-aged sheet.     

基于ANSYS的铝制错列锯齿翅片成形回弹研究

以铝制错列锯齿翅片为研究对象,利用ANSYS/LS-DYNA非线性动力有限元求解功能,模拟了翅片成形过程与卸载后回弹变形的全过程,得到了成形过程中任意时刻各处的应力、应变和卸载后板料的回弹结果。研究翅片成形过程中压边力、板料厚度、冲压速度、刀具齿形组合、刀具圆角半径等对回弹的影响。利用回弹规律进行模具补偿设计,以此优化专用翅片成形机及模具的结构参数和工艺参数,从根本上提高铝制错列锯齿翅片的制造精度,为翅片的结构优化设计提供了可靠的依据。     

Optimization techniques applied to single point incremental forming process for biomedical application

Single point incremental forming (SPIF) process has the potential to replace conventional sheet forming process in industrial applications. For this, its major defects, especially poor geometrical accuracy, should be overcome. This process is influenced by many factors such as step size, tool diameter, and friction coefficient. The optimum selection of these process parameters plays a significant role to ensure the quality of the product. This paper presents the optimization aspects of SPIF parameters for titanium denture plate. The optimization strategy is determined by numerical simulation based on Box–Behnken design of experiments and response surface methodology. The Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm and the Global Optimum Determination by Linking and Interchanging Kindred Evaluators algorithm have been proposed for application to find the optimum solutions. Minimizing the sheet thickness, the final achieved depth and the maximum forming force were considered as objectives. For results evaluation, the denture plate was manufactured using SPIF with the optimum process parameters. The comparison of the final geometry with the target geometry was conducted using an optical measurement system. It is shown that the applied method provides a robust way for the selection of optimum parameters in SPIF.     

Development of a new apparatus for ultrasonic vibration-assisted glass hot embossing process

A new apparatus for an ultrasonic vibration-assisted glass hot embossing process has been developed. The upper die constitutes the ultrasonic vibrating device, and a cooler is provided to protect the transducer from the high operating temperatures. An ultrasonic horn originally designed for use at room temperature was modified to ensure correct operation of ultrasonic vibrating device for high temperature use. Because the load cell is located inside a vacuum chamber, the detection of the force applied to the glass during the forming process is not significantly impacted by external forces, and thus, a precise force history of the forming glass can be obtained. Flat hot embossing experiments were performed to investigate the effect of ultrasonic vibration on the amount of force required during forming, and Fresnel structure hot embossing experiments were then conducted to investigate the improvement in molding accuracy gained through ultrasonic vibration. The experimental results are taken to validate the manufacturing potential of the developed apparatus and the improvement in formability achieved by applying ultrasonic vibration.     

Improvement of formability for the incremental sheet metal forming process

In order to obtain competitiveness in the field of industrial manufacture, a reduction in the development period for the small batch manufacture of products is required. In order to meet these requirements, an incremental sheet metal forming process has been developed. In this process, a small local region of a sheet blank deforms incrementally by moving a hemispherical head tool over an arbitrary surface. In this work, an incremental sheet metal forming process controlled three dimensionally by a computer has been accomplished. It has been shown by the experiments that a sheet blank is mainly subject to shear-dominant deformation. Therefore, the final thickness strain can be predicted. The uniformity of thickness throughout the deformed region is one of the key factors to improve the formability in the sheet metal forming processes. Using the predicted thickness strain distribution, the intermediate geometry is decided in the manner that a shear deformation is restrained in the highly shear-deformed region and vice versa. This double-pass forming method is found to be very effective so that the thickness strain distribution of a final shape can be made more uniform.     

Numerical simulation of incremental sheet forming with considering yield surface distortion

The incremental sheet forming processes (ISF) are attracting lots of attentions due to their advantages on rapid prototyping, without special dies and short lead time. The numerical simulation can be a valid method to investigate the forming process and predict the defects. In this study, an extended fully coupled ductile damage model with mixed nonlinear hardening was used to simulate the ISF process. At the same time, the yield surface distortion was also considered in this model, which can enhance the capability of modeling metallic material behavior under complex loading paths. Afterwards, some simulations were conducted with the proposed model. Additionally, one tension-shear orthogonal loading test was assigned on the one representative element in order to investigate the loading path effect during ISF process. By comparing the equivalent plastic strain and ductile damage evolution of the blank, the influence of the yield surface distortion on the ISF process was proved.