Journal of

ELSEVIER

Journal of Materials Processing Techology 52 (1995) 359-367

Materials
Processing
Technology

A new technology of sheet-metal flexible-die forming using

a viscoplastic pressure-carrying medium

Ming-Wang Fu a'*, Si-Quang Lu a, Mao-Heng Huang b
Nanchang Institute of Aeronautical Technology, Nanchan9 330034, People's Republic of China
b Governor Office of Jiangxi Province, Nanchang 330046, People's Republic of China

Received 13 January 1994

Industrial Summary
The conventional pressure-carrying media of sheet-metal forming are solid materials (a
rubber or polyurethane pad), liquid (oil and water) and gas (pressured air and expanding air).
The various flexible-die forming methods using the above pressure-carrying media have a lot of
different characteristics and have promoted the development of sheet metal forming technology. There are, however, a lot of disadvantages in using these pressure-carrying media. In order
to explore a new pressure-carrying medium, numerous experiments have been undertaken, as
a result of which a new type of pressure-carrying medium called a viscoplastic pressure-carrying
medium (VPCM) has been synthesized. In this paper, a new kind of flexible-die forming
technology using VPCM has been put forward and used to manufacture many different
workpieces. The experimental results have shown that this kind of technology has a lot of
advantages, such as a small drawing coefficient, good surface fineness, high dimensionalaccuracy, and a simple and a general-service die structure. Moreover, This technology can also
be used to manufacture complicated workpieces with a large degree of deformation or substantial local deformation. According to the practical uses of this technology, three sets of die are
described also in this paper.

1. Introduction
Sheet m e t a l w o r k i n g is the b a c k b o n e of m a n y i n d u s t r i a l fields such as electronics,
a u t o m o b i l e s , a g r i c u l t u r e m a c h i n e s a n d the a e r o n a u t i c a l a s t r o n a u t i c a l industry. Since
the r e q u i r e m e n t s for d i m e n s i o n a l accuracy, surface fineness a n d shape c o m p l i c a t i o n of
sheet m e t a l p r e s s - w o r k i n g w o r k p i e c e s are b e c o m i n g increasingly higher, m o r e lowplasticity a n d b a d - f o r m a b i l i t y sheet m e t a l s need to be formed. C o n c e r n i n g the third
r e q u i r e m e n t , the m a n u f a c t u r i n g field has c o m e b a c k to the state of m o r e types a n d less

*Corresponding author.
0924-0136/95/$9.50 (~ 1995 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved
SSDI 0 9 2 4 ~ 0 1 3 6 ( 9 4 ) 0 1 6 1 8 - B

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M.-W, Fu et al. /Journal (?[Materials Processing Technology 52 (1995) 359 367

output, especially in the aeronautical and astronautical industry. Conventional pressworking technology does not satisfy the needs of industrial development.
Flexible die forming (FDF) is an important technology of sheet metal forming. It
uses the pressure-carrying medium (PCM) to replace a rigid punch or die. The
conventional pressure-carrying medium is liquid (water, oil), gas (pressured or expanding air) and an elastic body (a rubber or polyurethane pad). Thus, F D F uses
a different PCM and has different characteristics. Liquid is used as the PCM for
hydro-mechanical drawing [1,2]. Although it has been used widely, there are some
disadvantages such as liquid splash when forming fails and difficulty in controlling the
liquid pressure during forming. Thirdly, it is troublesome to perform the pressing
operation due to concern about possible liquid leakage. Rubber is used as PCM for
the Guerin process and polyurethane is often used as the PCM for F D F [3 7], but
deep-drawing parts and complicated workpieces, however, cannot be produced by
this F D F technology because of the deformation limit of PCM itself. Rubber-pad
forming is also used widely in aeroplane factories. Its equipment, however, is very
expensive and workpieces with great local deformation can not be manufactured by
this process. Gas is used as the pressure-carrying medium for superplastic bulging and
explosive forming, but its efficiency is low and its thickness reduction is great.
Kurosaki et al. have used a viscoplastic medium (VM) to replace the rigid punch to
pierce very small holes in sheet metal [8 11 ], which is another good use of FDF. On
the basis of the above statement, an attempt is made in an exploratory way to discover
a new process of sheet-metal flexible-die forming using a new kind of viscoplastic
material synthesized by the present authors as the PCM. This PCM has a viscoplastic
mechanics behaviour and it is called a viscoplastic pressure-carrying medium
(VPCM). A great deal of effort has been put into both exploring the principles and
experimental study. A lot of workpieces with a low drawing coefficient and a complicated shape have been formed by this technology. The workpieces shown in Fig. 4 have
been manufactured by flexible die forming using the VCPM. These workpieces are
manufactured in the same die, by means of changing the punch, the blank-holder and
the flange.

2. The characteristics and advantages of this new technology by comparison with

conventional FDF
F D F using the VPCM has a lot of advantages:
(1) The main characteristics of the die are a simple structure, low cost, a short
manufacturing period and universal usage, so that different workpieces can be
manufactured in the same die set by changing the punch, the flange and the blankholder.
(2) Great formability. Because the VPCM changes the flow pattern and stress states
of the sheet metal, the formability can be improved greatly. For example, the drawing
coefficient of 08AI is 0.57-0.58 for conventional drawing, 0.41 for hydro-mechanical
drawing, but is 0.38 for this kind of FDF. For the hemi-spherical workpiece of
stainless steel sheet metal with a barrel-shaped bottom in Fig. 4(a), the drawing

M.-VK Fu et al./Journal of Materials Processing Technology 52 (1995) 359 367

361

coefficient of the barrel is 0.21. This illustrates that sheet metal formability using this
new technology is much better than that of conventional drawing and hydro-mechanical drawing.
(3) Increasing of the dimensional accuracy of products and decreasing of the
spring-back. The VPCM of this technology improves the stress state and the stress
distribution, so that it increases the dimensional accuracy. For FDF, the dimensional
accuracy can reach IT 9-10, but its value is only ITll-12 for conventional drawing
technology.
(4) Good surface fineness. In conventional drawing, the sheet metal is deformed by
the way of flowing along the corner of the rigid die, so that the surface of sheet metal is
easily scratched. However, for this technology, the sheet metal is deformed by the way
of forming a "convex ridge" in the drawing process. Therefore, the sheet metal do not
flow along the corner of flange and its surface is not scratched and retains the original
surface fineness of the sheet metal.
(5) Small wall-thickness reduction. The high pressure generated by VPCM makes the
sheet metal wrap the punch tightly and the frictional effect between the punch and the
sheet metal makes the radial tensile stress decrease. On the other hand, the strain-rate
sensitivity of VPCM makes it easy to set up high pressure in the medium container and
to increase the visco-friction effect between the VPCM and the sheet metal, which
produces the resistance to the wall-thickness reduction of the sheet metal. On account of
the above, the wall-thickness reduction is small in this technology. For the flat cupping
of 08A1 sheet metal for which the drawing coefficient is 0.57, the maximum wallthickness reduction is about 15 20%, but the maximum wall-thickness reduction is
only 8% when the drawing coefficient is 0.38 for the present technology. The drawing
coefficient of the cone-shaped workpiece in Fig. 4(f) is 0.40 and the maximum wallthickness reduction at the top of the workpiece is less than 34%.
(6) A lot of low-plasticity and bad-formability materials or high-strength materials
can be deformed by this technology.
(7) Workpeices with complicated or unusual shapes can be manufactured by this
technology, such as the workpieces shown in Figs. 4 (d), (f)-(i).

3. The requirements for a viscoplastic pressure-carrying medium

In view of the disadvantages of the PCM of conventional F D F and the experiences
of hydro-mechanical drawing research, the authors think that the ideal VPCM should
meet the following requirements:
(a) relatively high strain-rate sensitivity; (b) low adhesion to the metal surface and
a good ability to be easily shed from the surface of the workpieces and the die; (c) good
sticky ability and stability; (d) proper stickiness and cohesion, i.e., difficult to splash; (e)
harmless to human health and non-polluting of the environment; (f) good repeatability in use:
On the basis of the above requirements and numerous experimental results, the
authors have synthesized a kind of viscoplastic pressure-carrying medium. Experimental results have shown that the VPCM meets the above requirements.

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~L-W. Fu et al./Journal qf Materials Processing Technology 52 (1995) 359 367

Punch

Upper' b o l s t ~'r

"

St

Scre~ 2
Fig. 1. Rigid b l a n k - h o l d i n g s t r u c t u r e .

4. D i e structure

As stated above, flexible-die forming uses a pressure-carrying medium to replace the

rigid-punch or rigid-die, Fig. 1 is the F D F die for using the VPCM. In the figure, the
sheet metal is placed on the medium container which is full of VPCM. After the punch
has been inserted into the container, the high pressure of the VPCM is created,
whereupon the VPCM presses the blank against the surface of the punch to form the
workpiece to the shape of the punch. The characteristics of the die structure are as
follows:
(1) General service. Different workpieces can be manufactured using a different
punch, blank-holder and flange. The workpieces shown in Fig. 8 have been manufactured by this way.
(2) Blank-holding Force. The blank-holding force for the die set is generated by
a rigid blank-holding structure and can be controlled according to the sheet metal and
the workpieces.
(3) Filling of VPCM. For large mass production, the VPCM does not flow out from
the container. After the punch has been inserted into the container the pusher bar
moves down, and after deformation has ceased the pusher bar moves up to let the
VPCM rise up to the flange plane. For small mass production, the VPCM can flow
out of the container through the throtting set mounted in the throtting hole. The
filling of the VPCM is finished by manual operation.
(4) Controlling of the pressure. As the filling of VPCM is performed by the
movement of the pusher bar, the pressure of the VPCM inside the container is
controlled by the throtting, set according to the strength, the formability of the sheet

M.-W. Fu et al. / Journal of Materials Processing Technology 52 (1995) 359-367

363

tpperbolster

Sprin9 2 ~ ,

Sprin91 ~
Blank holder / ~ /
Flan9e

2.~

Sealri~19

~ ~i/li

o lt,q]olJtI

Seal r i n g ~

Fig. 2 Elastic blank-holding structure.

Bar
l:0~e;'!mlsl,,;,

Pu,,~,

"/-'fl/A

IF5117"./'71 B;a;~k hinter,

//IVA

~V/A----~

~
Pressure

meask~
l r~v~

iIil~COIla~iltel'

Fig. 3. Die suitable for a twin-drive press,

metal and the workpieces shape. The handling of the blank-holder in Fig. 1 must be
performed for every forming operation. The production efficiency is low and it takes
3-5 min to perform one forming operation. Thus it cannot be suitable to large mass
production. The blank-holder in Fig. 2 is elastic. The blank-holding force can be
controlled by holding down the spring of the blank-holding set. The filling of the
V P C M and the controlling of its pressure are the same as for the first die set. The main
characteristic of this die set is that it is more efficient than the first die set. Fig. 3 is

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M.-W, Fu et al./Journal of Materials Processing Technology 52 (1995) 359 367

(e)

(a)

(b)

(c)

(d)

(f)
Fig. 4. Workpieces manufactured by the new technology.

M.-W. Fu et al. /Journal of Materials Processing Technology 52 (1995) 359-367

(g)
(h)

(i)

(J)

(k)

(0
Fig. 4. (Continued)

365

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M.-W. Fu et al./Journal ojMaterials Processing Technology' 52 (1995) 359 367

a further die set, suitable for twin-drive press, and it can be used to press automobile
parts. The pressure measurer is mounted in the throtting holes.

5. Applications
The workpieces shown in Fig. 4 are applications of this new technology to the
manufacturing of actual workpieces and complicated parts. All of the workpieces have
been manufactured in one operation. Workpieces (a) (c) are helicopter parts, (a) being
a hemispherical part with a barrel bottom. Its material is stainless steel and the
conventional drawing coefficient is 0.56-0.58, but the drawing coefficient of its barrel
bottom is about 0.21. Parts of (b) and (c) have a high requirement for surface fineness
and dimensional accuracy. The workpieces from (d)-(l) are either of complicated
shape or have a small drawing coefficient. The drawing coefficient of(e) is 0.38, but the
conventional drawing coefficient and hydro-mechanical-drawing coefficient are 0.58
and 0.40 respectively for this material. The workpiece in (f) has the property that the
flange plane is at an angle to the drawing axis. The drawing coefficient (defined as d/D,
where d is the maximum diameter of the workpiece and D is the original blank
diameter) is 0.40, but the conventional drawing coefficient is 0.56-0.58. It is reported
that this kind of workpiece with such a degree of deformation need eight die sets for
drawing. All of the workpeices in Fig. 4 have been manufactured using the same die
sets, so the new process saves at least thirty to forty die sets that would be required to
produce these workpieces with conventional technology.

6. Conclusions
(1) The new technology of sheet-metal flexible-die forming using the VPCM has
a lot of advantages over other flexible die forming methods, such as a small drawing
coefficient, good surface fineness, high dimensional-accuracy and a simple and general-service die structure.
(2) The new technology need not impose any extra requirements for forming
equipment over those for conventional drawing.
(3) The new technology has a great ecomonic potential and great prospects for
application.
(4) The VPCM is suited to mass production and its cost is reasonable.

References
[1] Japanese Patent, No. 36-200010.
[2] H. Amino, K. Nakamura. T. Nakagawa, Y. Kurosaki, Y. Mizukusa, Y. Miyake, Hydraulic drawing
and its application on the forming of automobile parts, J. Mats. Proc. Tech., 23 (1990) 243 265.
[3] Japanese Patent, No. 57-55493.
[4] German Patent~ No, 2601423.3.
[.5] Soviet Union Patent, No. 1156774.
[6] S. Thiruvarudchelvan and J.G. Gan, Drawing of hemispheric cups with an annular urethane pad,
J. Mals. Proc. Techn., 36 (1992) 43 55.

M.-W. Fu et al. / Journal o f Materials Processing Technology 52 (1995) 359-367

367

[7] S. Thiruvarudchelvan and J.G. Gan, Deep drawing of conical cups using friction-actuated blank
holding, J. Mats. Shaping Tech., 9 (2) (1991) 59-65.
[8] Y. Kurosaki, I. Fujishir, Y. Miyake, Y. Fayukawa, A simple piering process applicable to brittle
materials, J. Eng. lnd. 12 (May 1990) 155-160.
[9] Y. Kurosaki, l. Fujishir., Y. Miyake, Y. Fayukawa, A piercing technique for glass sheets by the impact
compression of a viscoplastic pressure medium, JSME lnt, J., 32 (2) (1989) 330 337.
[10] Y. Kurosaki, studies on microplastic working, Adv. Tech. Plasticity, 2 (1990) 105%1064.
[11] Y. Kurosaki, 1. Fujishiro, K. Bann and A. Kamoto, A manufacturing process using the impact
compression of a viscoplastic pressure medium-application to the piering of fine holes, JSME lnt J.,
30, (2621 (1987) 653 660.
[12] Mao-Heng Huan, Sheet metal flexible die forming technology by using the viscoplastic pressurecarrying medium. Proc. 2nd Int. Conf. on Die and Mould Tech., Singapore; (1992) 247-254.