Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION
1.1 Metal Forming Technology
Nearly 60 years ago, Swift presented four main classes of individual involved in the area of
metal forming. They included the skilled artisan, engineer, metallurgist, and mathematician. The
basis for the artisans craft lay in the experience gained from an observation of what happened,
whereas the scientific understanding of the mathematician, metallurgist, and engineer provided a
means of understanding. The difference between the mathematician, metallurgist, and engineer in
terms of perspective and approach to the common problem of metal forming is illustrated.
The tools available to engineers, scientists, and artisans have developed extensively over the
intervening years. There are notable examples of researchers who have the breadth of vision to
cross the divides between the disciplines in an effort to solve larger problems, only to find
limited industrial application of their work through an understandable industrial focus on money.
Perhaps one of the biggest problems today is not within the scientific disciplines mentioned, but
rather the final application where the artisans intuition still holds sway, because it is perceived to
be less costly. With the reduction of skilled artisans, the introduction of new materials, reduced
time to market, and the need to continually develop more efficient production methods, there is
an ever increasing need to embed this intuition within the processes [1].
1.1.1

Material characterization and modeling

Improvements in current forming processes and the development of new more flexible forming
processes are dependent upon the understanding of material characteristics. Current test methods,
both mechanical and physical, have provided a disjointed set of material information, though
more comprehensive data sets are becoming available. The increasingly complex mathematical
model developed to describe the behavior of these materials is not widely adopted within the
metal forming industries. The most commonly used model within finite element codes still
remains Hills quadratic model [1].
A more flexible version of Hills model was developed by Leacock without increasing the
quantity of test data required. This new yield model represents the first pragmatic development
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Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

of Hills work in 15 years. However, it is limited by the assumptions of plane stress and isotropic
hardening. These assumptions are appropriate for the modeling of monotonic stress-strain paths
common in stretch forming and sheet metal hydro forming, but less so for rapidly changing strain
paths experienced in deep drawing and incremental forming processes. A new form of
constitutive law is required to describe the complex hardening observed in these processes.
In addition, certain metal forming processes necessitate the use of more complex descriptions.
The plane stress formulations mentioned above lack the capability to represent triaxial stress.
Triaxial stress becomes more important when through thickness compressive stresses are
sufficient to induce yielding. These compressive stresses can occur as a result of tooling contact
or small radius bending in hemming processes. The highly textured properties of certain
aluminium alloys used in the canning industry present unique difficulties that can only be
addressed through the use of more complex material models. There is always a danger that, as
the complexity of these models increases, the quantity of available test data will not match the
model calibration requirements, necessitating the introduction of new test methods.
The requirement for a new multi-scale approach has been highlighted by Doherty et al. and later
by McDowell to ensure a better understanding of multiscale plastic deformation for upstream
development of new more formable materials. Modern crystallographic and micro structural
analysis systems including transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force
microscopy (AFM) combined with X-ray diffraction (XRD) and nano-indentation provide
information that can characterize the micro scale plastic deformation of metals. Metals are
difficult to characterize at this length scale since the long range order is interrupted by
dislocations, grain boundaries, and precipitates. More recent work has identified ways of
surmounting these difficulties to model the textural evolution and recrystallization during plastic
deformation and subsequent heat treatment in plane strain rolling.
Nevertheless, the wider industrial application of such techniques would require access to
specialist characterization equipment that would ultimately limit the widespread use of improved
material models. There is a niche in which phenomenological characterization methods informed
from microscale observations present a more feasible path for wider industrial application. The
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Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

widespread industrial use of uniaxial tensile testing equipment creates a natural preference by
industry to use cost effective single axis loading test methods for mechanical characterization.
Development of material models and test methods based around this approach are more likely to
be used for industrial forming simulations.
1.1.2

Metal forming processes analysis

Current finite element analysis packages offer the capability to design and develop the tooling
and process parameters in a virtual environment. Most of these codes are well developed, with
the option for user additions where required. Optimization methods are also well established with
the inclusion of material and process variability now a reality.
Essential to the design and development of more intelligent metal forming machine is the
inclusion of a closed loop control system within the modeling environment. The viability of this
method has already been shown for the roll bending process, but current analyses are typically
limited to the determination of optimized machine control with a fixed set of process parameters.
A new paradigm in metal forming machine design and development can be realized through the
provision of a virtual test bed. The user interfaces in finite element codes can be used to modify
the control curves based on the kinematics of selected model parameters. The control can be
achieved either through specific subroutines linked to the solver or communicated to an external
program that will be used in the final machine control system. It now becomes possible not only
to assess a fixed set of kinematics, but also to adjust the controlling curves based on the
feedback from virtual sensors. Extensive testing of new machine configurations, sensor type
and locations, blanks, and control algorithms then becomes relatively inexpensive. Such an
approach will form the basis for the development of the next generation of metal forming
processes.
1.1.3

Metal forming process development

Essential elements of innovative forming processes include the reduction of environmental

impact, material consumption, process steps, non-recurrent tooling costs, and increased
formability and flexibility. A comprehensive review and categorization of such processes can be
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Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

found elsewhere. The incremental forming process provides a highly adaptive method with
minimal part-specific tooling requirements and increased formability, but has a relatively high
cycle time and inferior surface finish when compared with traditional fixed tooling processes.
The longer cycle times and increased formability make this process a viable low cost alternative
to certain super plastic forming processes.
Multipoint forming methods are now well developed with full scale industrial tooling in use for
sheet and plate forming processes. As with the incremental forming method these processes often
exhibit poor surface finish. In addition, the response of the rubber interpolator changes over
time, thus limiting the usefulness of an initial optimization of the process. The incremental and
multipoint forming processes were first combined by Yoon et al. in a new form of an incremental
roll bending system and later extended to multipoint bending. Unlike normal roll bending
processes the multipoint system was capable of forming double curvature components, but is
limited in range by material buckling.
The processes discussed above are highly innovative solutions to metal forming processes, yet
many lack the facility for closed loop control. The process and material variability common in
metal forming techniques limits the efficacy of fixed machine control. Adaptation withinmore
intelligent machines are the only robust method of mitigating the risks posed by material and
process variability. Machine control algorithms based upon process models have already been
proved to be effective in roll bending, stretch forming, deep drawing, and flexible forming
processes. Nevertheless, the use of skilled artisans still prevails in preference to the investment
required to implement such systems.

1.2 Press tool

Stamping [2] is a sheet metal forming process of converting a flat sheet of metal into a part of
desired shape. Metal stampings are used to replace parts previously welded together from several
components. A well-designed sheet-metal stamping can sometimes eliminate the need for
riveting or other fastening processes. Stampings can be used to improve existing designs that
often are costly and labor-intensive. Even products already improved upon, with their production
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Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

expenses cut to the bone, can often be further improved, further innovated and further decreased
in cost.
The metal stamping die is an ideal tool that can produce large quantities of parts that are
consistent in appearance, quality, and dimensional accuracy. It is a press tool capable of cutting
the metal, bending it, drawing its shape into considerable depths, embossing, coining, finishing
the edges, curling, and otherwise altering the shape and the outline of the metal part to suit the
wildest imaginable design concepts.

1.3 Broad Classification

1.3.1

Progressive press tool

Progressive stamping is a metal working method that can encompass punching, coining, bending
and several other ways of modifying metal raw material, combined with an automatic feeding
system. The feeding system pushes a strip of metal (as it unrolls from a coil) through all of the
stations of a progressive stamping die. Each station performs one or more operations until a
finished part is made. The final station is a cutoff operation, which separates the finished part
from the carrying web. The carrying web, along with metal that is punched away in previous
operations, is treated as scrap metal. Both are cut away, knocked down (or out of the dies) and
then ejected from the die set, and in mass production are often transferred to scrap bins via
underground scrap material conveyor belts.
The progressive stamping die is placed into a reciprocating stamping press. As the press moves
up, the top die moves with it, which allows the material to feed. When the press moves down, the
die closes and performs the stamping operation. With each stroke of the press, a completed part
is removed from the die. Since additional work is done in each "station" of the die, it is important
that the strip be advanced very precisely so that it aligns within a few thousandths of an inch as it
moves from station to station. Bullet shaped or conical "pilots" enter previously pierced round
holes in the strip to assure this alignment since the feeding mechanism usually cannot provide
the necessary precision in feed length. The dies are usually made of tool steel to withstand the
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Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

high shock loading involved, retain the necessary sharp cutting edge, and resist the abrasive
forces involved. The cost is determined by the number of features, which determine what tooling
will need to be used.

Figure 1.1 Progressive die [2]

1.3.2

Compound press tool

A compound die differs from a progressive die in that it performs two or more cutting operations
during one stroke of the press at one station only. In order to do this both the upper and lower
member of the die set carry punching and blanking elements which are directly opposed to each
other. In other words, the piercing punches act in opposite direction with respect to the blanking
punch. A simple compound die is show in figure 1.2

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Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

Figure 1.2 Compound die [2]

1.3.3

Combination press tool

In combination dies the cutting and forming or drawing operations are carried out in single
operation. The operations such as forming, drawing, extruding and embossing may be combined
with each other or with the various cutting operations such as blanking, piercing, trimming,
broaching, and cutoff. Much of the success of these dies depends on the provisions for stripping
and ejecting finished parts.

Fig 1.3 Combination die [2]

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Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

1.4 Parameters effecting tool life and part quality

1.4.1 Improving punch and die life
Punch and die clearance plays an important role in press tool design process. Optimum selection
of clearance is necessary to confirm the tool life as well as part quality. Many researchers have
concentrated on this area to determine the effect on punches as well as on part quality. It is
observed that obtaining the optimum punch and die clearance can reduce wear rate in punches. It
is also observed that providing uniform clearance on straight edges and at contour areas can
induce differential stress on punches. Hence the punch surface at contours will wear off easily so
providing the differential clearance on these areas based on geometry can reduce wear and
improve the punch and die life [5]. The distortion of die surface also can be reduced [6]. At the
same time increasing the punch hardness can also improve the wear behavior of the punch. Case
hardening is one the methods where the hardness of punch is improved in order to obtain better
life [7]. Laser cladding is also carried out where a small amount of material added locally to the
punches which provides good hardness. The cryogenic treated punches exhibit good wear
resistance characteristic [8]. Rapid tooling approaches are also applied in case of small scale
production system where punch and die life is not an important factor [9].
Stress concentration is another parameter which can affect the punch life. This effect is more in
fine blanking operation where the clearance between punch and die is negligible. Hence the
stress concentration at cutting edges will be higher. To enhance the punch life a small corner
radius was recommended which will reduce the stress concentration and reduce the chipping out
of punch edges, hence increasing the punch life [11].
Another mechanism which can impact the punch life is temperature. A punch in operation will
develop heat, due to this heat temperature will increase and proportionately wear rate will also
increases. Hence it is necessary to remove the heat. A cooling system can be provided on press
tool reduce the temperature, at the same time coated punches can be used to reduce the heat
generated from the flow friction of material being processed [12 - 13]. Lubricant can also be
used to reduce the friction and dissipate the heat [14].

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1.4.2 Experimental and FEA simulation to determine product quality
Final product obtained after processing in a press tool should meet all the required specification.
In order to confirm the part quality various tools and techniques are employed. Predicting the
product quality is very important in a design process. Even FEA simulations are carried out to
determine the product quality [16]. Different methodologies like ductile fracture methodology
etc. are applied to determine the final quality of the product. Researchers have also concentrated
on implementing same methodology for different materials. FEA simulations are carried out to
determine the product quality based on developed model and to validate the same using FEA
package. The fracture mechanism was validated using ABAQUS software. Similar work has
been carried out to determine the sheared edge quality where a model is developed to determine
the edge quality and FEA simulations are done to validate the model [18]. At the same time
product quality can also be confirmed using DEFORM software which is widely used in sheet
metal stamping operations. Hyperform software is applicable to determine the blank shapes and
to predict spring back effect in formed components [19].
Predicting the product quality in formed object is also a challenging work. Many experimental as
well as FEA simulations are carried out to determine the quality of formed product. The blanked
edge quality and metal flow characteristics play an important role in forming process. It is
observed that blanked edge quality will have impact on forming process [20]. Same is also
validated using FE simulations.
1.4.3 Effect of spring back on part quality
Spring back is tendency of material to return back to its original shape after bending operation.
To accommodate spring back various provisions should be made in a press tool. Predicting
spring back is difficult task as it depends on various parameters one of them being material
properties [21]. Robust methods are being developed to predict the spring back based on
experimental data and also from 3D simulation [22].
Electro-plastic behavior is another mechanism where spring back can be reduced while
processing the sheet metal. A pulse of current is supplied to the material under operation which
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alters the elastic behavior of material and reduces force required to bend the component [24].
This can be used to alter the spring back based on force applied.
1.4.4 Multiple operations in one setup
In certain cases multiple operations are carried out in one station. Unlike combination tool many
operations are combined together for ex piercing, blanking, bending or forming in one stage but
multiple punches are used. Few authors have worked on combining piercing and shaving
operation in one punch. Compared them the same process conducted individually. The FE
simulations are also carried out to determine the product quality and to determine the material
flow characteristics [25].
Another approach derived by an author is to obtain multiple bending operations in single setup.
A single bending punch is designed to accommodate multiple bending of single part. This
operation is carried out manually one after the other by holding the blank at different positions
[26]. This is carried out on regular simple blank shapes. Fuzzy control systems are also
developed for multiple operations to be carried out in single set up [27].
1.4.5 Automating design process
Since the tool design is dependent upon geometric details of the product all the aspects of tool
design cannot be automated. But few aspects of tool design for example guiding elements
selection can be automated, an effort is made to automate the die set section process where the
standard die set data base is created and is extracted as the design process continues. The
dimensioning process is also automated by using auto dimension modules which will help the
design engineer in detailing process [29]. Another design aspect which is automated is material
selection for the plates of tool. As the detailed drawing is prepared for press tool elements
material for those elements will be suggested automatically. Knowledge based strip layout design
is another area of interest where automated strip layout design is being studied [30]. Based on the
designed strip layout the required piloting and guiding elements selection process also being
automated [31] and also the required inserts design is also automated [32].

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1.4.6 Process parameters
Process parameters are tool operating parameters which will affect the tool life. There are many
factors like material feeding automated system for material feeding can be utilized to avoid miss
feeding and avoid damage to punches. Another factor which affects the tool is slug jamming and
slug carry-up along with punch. The slug jamming will result in either causing damage to punch
or will effect die inserts. Slug carry-up will damage the strip as well as stripper plates especially
in high speed presses. A model is presented to predict the slug carry-up occurrence and to
removal of slug through air blow methods [33]. Integrated sensing elements are employed in
order to determine the slug build up and carry up and more over to determine miss feed or strip
[35]. BLANKSOFT software was developed in order to determine the sheared edge quality of
the part based on usage of the punch. Based on number of cycles the press tool has worked the
software can predict the blank quality [36].
1.4.7 Review on forming
Metal forming is a complex operation where predicting the exact formability is very difficult and
predicting the final required blank shape requires lot of calculation hence a net shaped system
was created to predict the blank shape [37, 38]. Case based reasoning is another parameter which
is helpful in predicting the final blank shape and for design process [39, 40].
Thinning of sheet metal in drawing process is also a parameter many researchers have worked on
this field especially in deep drawing operation where thinning is maximum. The usage of rubber
punch like silicon rubber forming punches can reduce the thinning effect [42] magneto
rheological fluid is also used to reduce the same effect [43]. Numerical simulations are also
carried out and to determine thinning effect [45].
Load applies on sheet metal for drawing process and sheared edge quality is another parameter
affecting the product quality as well as on punch life especially in non-axisymmetric drawing
operation [46 - 48]. To enhance the tool life and product quality process parameters like
lubrication, temperature etc. should be controlled [49]. New softwares are being developed like
LS-DYNA in order to help design a tool for complex forming operations [50].
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Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

Review of literature indicated that efforts have been made to increase tool life, reduce tool
down time, and to ensure product quality. Emphasis is given to increase the tool life with
optimum selection of punch and die clearance, where wear due to punch and die clearance is
considered as a major factor. But less amount of work has been done on determining the
behavior of punch and die inserts under stressed and stretched conditions. A few authors have
also worked to automate the design process, but more work on this field is desired. Furthermore,
FEA simulations are also carried out to confirm the tool life, but most of the studies are
conducted only on separate blanking or piercing or on forming operation. In real practice
producing a component requires series of operations carried out in a sequence. But limited work
has been done to analyze tool containing series of operations. Present need is to apply new
techniques available to ensure part quality, tool life and reduce maintenance.

1.5 Main objectives of the project

The important objective of this work is to design combination press tool for clamp. The
objectives of this project work are described below in detail

Design a tool for clamp to obtain a defect free part and meet high volume production

requirement.
Analyze the punch to determine the stresses induced, and validate the results with
theoretical calculations.

1.6 Methodology of the project

The methodology followed to complete the project includes preliminary study of component and
its specifications, selection of strip layout. Complete design of tool using Auto CAD 2D
software, and 3D using Uni-graphics software. Conduct analysis on critical elements of tool
using ANSYS Work Bench software.

1.7 Organization of the report

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Design and analysis of combination press tool for c shaped clamp

The report is presented in 7 chapters
Chapter 1 introduction gives brief introduction to metal forming, press tools, clamps, types of
clamps, clamp details, literature review, main objective of the project, project methodology and
organization of the report.
Chapter 2 theories and concept of project work presents theory shearing, wipe bending die
terminology, element used for meshing of punches and die inserts, punches and die material
specification.
Chapter 3 objectives and methodology presents objectives of the work and the methodology
adopted in carrying out the project work.
Chapter 4 press tool design presents development review, strip layout, design of different
elements of press tool, machine specification.
Chapter 5 finite element analysis of press tool elements deals with determination of maximum
stresses and strains of punches for the computed structural loads.
Chapter 6 results and discussion presents the results that are obtained for the combination press
tool.
Chapter 7 conclusion and scope for future work presents conclusions of the project work and
presents concepts for future work which can be carried out.

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