Sheet Metal Forming Processes 6/12/03, Page 1

Chapter 7
Sheet-Metal Forming Processes

Chapter 7: Overview
Characteristics of sheet-metal forming processes Shearing of sheets and plates Bending of sheets Stretch forming Bulging Rubber forming Spinning forming for making axisymmetric parts Deep drawing Various other forming processes

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Introduction
Sheet metal forming processes
1. High ratio of surface area to thickness 2. Tensile stress in the plane, but significant reduction in thickness should be avoided 3. Able to form a large variety of shapes and sizes 4. Sheet-metal formed parts: metal desks, appliance bodies, beverage cans, car bodies, fuselages, etc.

Preparation of sheet metal

Sheet metal is produced by rolling processes
Available as coils, or flat sheets or plates

Removal of a blank from a large sheet

Mainly done by shearing processes Can also be cut with band saw, flame or laser

Sheet-metal characteristics
Elongation behaviors Anisotropy or directionality Grain size
Influence mechanical properties and surface appearance

Residual stress Springback

Thin parts is subjected to relatively small strains and likely springback

Wrinkling occurs under compressive load Coating, e.g. galvanizing with zinc

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Elongation of sheet metal

Uniform elongation expected High total elongation expected Necking begins when = n for a strain hardening material Strain rate sensitivity, m The higher the m, the more diffuse the neck becomes Strain:

2 = 1 / 2
For isotropic material:

55o

& = C m

Yield-point elongation
Frequently occurs for low carbon steels With upper and low yield points After the material yield, it stretches further in certain regions with no increase in the low yield point Influence surface quality (surface depression) and cause difficulty in coating and painting operations

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Shearing
Cutting sheet with shear stresses Carried out between a punch and a die (like a paper punch) Process variables:
Punch force P Punch speed Lubrication Condition of the punch and die, Clearance bet. punch & die Their corner radius

Clearance is the major factor The greater c is, the rougher the sheared edge

Shearing
Punched hole

Punched slug

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Shearing
Burr height increases with increasing clearance and increasing ductility The burnished surface is formed from the contact and rubbing of the sheared edge against the die wall or punch wall The ratio of the burnished to rough areas increases with increasing ductility; it decreases with increasing blank thickness and die-punch clearance With increasing punch speed, the sheared surface becomes smoother

Shearing operations

Fine blanking

c ~ 1% of the thickness

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Shearing dies

Slitting (rotary knives)

Shaving

Shearing & shaving

Bending
Another common metal working operation Form parts such as flanges, curls, seams, corrugation, etc. Impart stiffness to the part by increasing its moment of inertia The most important factor is the bending radius It is important to minimize springback

The outer layer are in tension and the inner one is in compression. The Theoretical strains is given by:

eo = ei =

1 (2 R / T ) + 1

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Minimum bend radius

The radius at which a crack appears on the outer surface of the bend.

Minimizing springback
Springback terminology Overbending

Compensation for springback 1. Overbending 2. Bottoming 3. Stretch bending (external tension forces ) 4. Increase temperature

Bottoming

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Common bending operations

Hemming

Stretch forming
The sheet is clamped around its edges and stretched over a moving die Make large-area parts such as aircraft and car panels Cannot produce sharp contours and corners Low-volume production, but versatile and economical

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Bulging
Expand the internal cavity of tubes First, a elastic and soft plug is placed inside the tube, and then pressed to expand the tube Typical products: coffee or water pitchers, barrels, beads on drums.

Bulged tube

Rubber forming
One of the die is made of flexible material, such as rubber The outer surface of the sheet metal is protected by the rubber Pressure is usually on the order of 10 MPa

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Spinning processes
Spinning involves the forming of axisymmetric parts over a rotating mandrel with the use of rigid tools or rollers
Conventional spinning Shear spinning No change in diameter

Shear spinning test

Deep drawing
A flat blank is formed into a deep-cavity part by a pressing die Typical parts are beverage cans, pots and pans, containers, etc. Process variables
1. Sheet properties 2. Ratio of blank to punch diameters 3. Sheet thickness 4. Punch-die clearance 5. Punch & die corner radii 6. Blankholder force 7. Friction 8. Punch speed

tube spinning

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Deep drawing
Pure drawing Pure stretching

Low blankholder force The blank thickness keeps at constant The blank diameter decreases and the blank flows freely

High blankholder force or use of beads The blank thickness changes, resulting in necking and tear The blank diameter keeps at constant

Various other forming methods

Superplastic forming for superplastic alloys Explosive forming: using the high explosive energy Hydroforming: pressure transferred from liquid Peen forming: using the energy of high speed steel or iron balls Electro-magnetic forming

Sheet Metal Forming Processes Questions and Discussion (in class) 1. Describe the material and process variable that influence the punch force in shear operations. (Shear strength and strain hardening, thickness, area, burnished area, clearance, punch speed, lubrication, etc.) 2. Explain why and how the modulus and the yield strength of the sheet influence the springback in bending. 3. Can the hardness of a sheet metal have an effect on the metals springback in bending? Why? 4. Assume that you are carrying out a sheet-forming operation and you find that the matieral is not sufficiently ductile. Make suggestions to improve its ductility. 5. List and explain several examples where (a) friction is desirable and (b) friction is not desirable.