Simplified calculation of the bending torques of steel sheet and the roller reaction in a straightening machine

In the straightening of steel sheet, it is necessary to calculate the optimal reduction of the steel blank by the working rollers of the straightening machine so that the sheet produced has the minimum residual stress and curvature. In the simulation of sheet straightening in multiroller machines, the curvature and bending torques of the steel sheet at contact points with the working rollers are first calculated and then the straightening forces are determined. In straightening steel sheet, it is important to calculate the forces in the multiroller straightening machine. Such calculations are based on determination of the reaction of the roller bearings and the forces at the upper and lower working-roller cassettes in straightening. With insufficient bending torque, it is impossible to eliminate harmful residual stress and surface defects in the sheet. Extreme roller torques and forces at the roller cassettes often lead to defects of the sheet, fracture of the working and supporting rollers, and failure of the straightening machine. In the present work, an approximate method is proposed for calculation of the optimal cold-straightening parameters of the steel sheet in a multiroller machine. The calculations permit determination of the curvature of the neutral plane in the sheet on straightening, the residual curvature of the sheet after straightening, the bending torque and the reaction of the working-roller bearings, the residual stress in the sheet, the penetration of the plastic deformation into the depth of the steel sheet, and the relative deformation of the longitudinal surface fibers of the sheet on straightening as a function of the radius of the working rollers, the distance between the rollers of the straightening machine, the reduction of the sheet by the upper rollers, the sheet thickness, and its properties (Young’s modulus, yield point, and strengthening modulus). The results may be widely used at manufacturing and metallurgical plants.