• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.17 no.8
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• pp.570-578
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• 2008

A flexible forming apparatus is composed a number of punches which have spherical pin tip shape instead of conventional solid die. The flexible forming tool consisted of punch array in a matrix form was proposed as an alternative forming method to substitute the conventional line heating method which use heat source to induce residual stress along specified heating lines. In this study, application of the flexible forming process to the small scale curved plate forming was conducted. Numerical simulations for both solid and flexible die forming process were carried out to compare the shape of the products between flexible and conventional die forming process. In addition, spring-back analysis was conducted to figure out the feasibility of the flexible forming process comparing with the die forming process in view of final configuration of the specimens. Moreover, experiment was also carried out to confirm the formability of the process. Consequently, it was confirmed that the flexible die forming method has capability and feasibility to manufacture the curved plates for shipbuilding.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Technology of Plasticity Conference
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• 2008.10a
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• pp.118-121
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• 2008

Flexible die is more efficacious than fixed die which is generally used in stretch forming process in view of production cost. Accordingly, in order to verily the validity of the flexible forming process, curved thin skin structure forming analyses using the fixed and flexible die were performed. As results, merit and demerit with regard to the fixed and flexible die were confirmed. The result of the stretch forming process analysis using the flexible die was better than that using the fixed die in view of the elastic recovery. However wrinkles were occurred on the sheet material due to die cavities between the punches in the flexible forming process, thus the solutions against these problems were presented.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.18 no.7
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• pp.556-564
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• 2009

Flexible forming process for sheet material using reconfigurable die is introduced based on numerical simulation. In general, this flexible forming process using the reconfigurable die has been utilized for manufacturing of curved thick plates used for hull structures, architectural structures and so on. In this study, numerical simulation of sheet metal forming process is carried out by using flexible dies model instead of conventional matched die set. The numerical simulation and experimental verification for sheet metal forming process using a flexible forming machine that is more suitable for thick plate forming process are carried out to confirm the appropriateness of the simulation process. As an elastic cushion, urethane pads are utilized using hyperelastic material model in the simulation for smoothing the forming surface which is discrete due to characteristics of the flexile die. In the flexible forming process for sheet metal, effect of a blank holder is also investigated according to blank holding methods. Formability in view of occurrence of dimples is compared with regard to the various punch sizes. Consequently, it is confirmed that the flexible forming for sheet material using urethane pad has enough capability and feasibility for manufacturing of smoothly curved surface instead of conventional die forming method.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.206-213
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• 2011

A flexible die, which is composed of a number of punches with adjusted heights to form a three-dimensional curved surface, is a crucial part of a flexible forming technology. In this study, the punch and control system of the flexible die were designed. The flexible die is divided into three modules, namely, punch, control and joint, and the corresponding modules were developed. The punch module materializes a three-dimensional forming surface by the control module, which is composed of an AC servo motor set and a linear guide. The joint module is necessary for the sequential motion between the servo motor set and the punch module. A sequential motion algorithm for the AC servo motor set, that uses the data of the punch relative heights, was also proposed. Finally, a flexible stretch forming test was carried out using the presently designed flexible die.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.21 no.7
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• pp.432-440
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• 2012

In this article, the design of the flexible forming process considering die shape compensation using an iterative over-bending method based on numerical simulation was conducted. In this method, the springback shape obtained from the final step of the first forming simulation is compared with the desired objective shape, and a shape error is calculated as a vector norm with three-dimensional coordinates. The error vector is inversely added to the objective surface to compensate both the upper and lower flexible die configurations. The flexible die shapes are recalculated and the punch arrays are adjusted according to the over-bent forming surface. These iterative procedures are repeated until the shape error variation converges to a small value. In addition, experimental verification was conducted using a 2000-kN flexible forming apparatus for thick plates. Finally, the configuration of the prototype obtained from the experiment was compared with the numerical simulation results, which had springback compensation. It is confirmed that the proposed method for compensating for the forming error could be used in the design of flexible forming of thick-curved plates.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Technology of Plasticity Conference
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• 2009.10a
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• pp.281-284
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• 2009

Flexible forming process for sheet metal using reconfigurable die is introduced based on numerical simulation. Numerical simulation of sheet metal forming process is carried out by using flexible dies model instead of conventional matched die set. Elastic cushion which has high resilience behavior from excessive deformation are inserted between forming punches and blank material for smoothing the forming surface which has discrete due to characteristics of the flexile die. As an elastic cushion, urethane pads are utilized using hyperelastic material model in the simulation. Formability in view of surface defect such as onset of dimple is compared with regard to various punch sizes. Consequently, it is confirmed that the flexible forming process for sheet material has appropriate capability and feasibility for manufacturing of smoothly curved surface instead of conventional die forming process.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Technology of Plasticity Conference
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• 2009.10a
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• pp.241-244
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• 2009

This paper deals with a usefulness verification of stretch forming process using flexible die. The stretch forming method is widely used in aircraft and high-speed train industries for manufacturing of skin structure, which is made of sheet metal. A great number of solid dies are originally used and developed for specific shapes with respect to different curvature radii of the skin structures. Accordingly, flexible stretch forming process is proposed in this study. It replaces the conventional solid dies with a set of height adjustable discrete punches. A usefulness of the flexible die is verified through extensive numerical simulations of the stretch forming process for simply curved sheet plate. The elastic recovery is considered and formability evaluations are conducted through a comparison of symmetry plane configurations.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.243-249
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• 2013

The multi-point forming (MPF) process for three-dimensional curved sheet metal has been developed as an alternative to the conventional die forming process since MPF allows the manufacturing of various shapes using one die set and reduce the cost of production. However, the MPF process cannot provide high quality products yet due to defects occurring in the sheet such as dimples and wrinkles. It can also lead to economic loss because of long tool setup time and additional machining required outside of the sheet formed area. In this study, a new sheet metal forming method, called flexible roll forming (FRF), is proposed to solve the problems of existing processes for three-dimensional curved sheet metal. This progressive process utilizes adjusting rods, as well as upper and lower flexible rollers as forming tools. In contrast with the existing processes, FRF can reduce the additional production costs because of the possible blank size for the part longitudinal direction, which is unrestricted. In this research, methods and procedures of the flexible roll forming technology are described. Numerical forming simulations of representative three-dimensional curved sheet products are also carried out to demonstrate the feasibility of this technology.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.19 no.8
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• pp.486-493
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• 2010

A shape error of the sheet metal product made by a flexible stretch forming process is occurred by a various forming parameters. A die used in the flexible stretch forming is composed of a punch array to obtain the various objective surfaces using only one die. But gaps between the punches induce the shape error and the defect such as a scratch. Forming parameters of the punch size and the elastic pad to prevent the surface defect must be considered in the flexible die design process. In this study, tendency analysis of shape error according to the forming parameters in the flexible stretch process is conducted using a finite element method. Three forming parameters, which are the punch size, the objective curvature radius and the elastic pad thickness, are considered. Finite element modeling using the punch height calculation algorithm and the evaluation method of the shape error, which is a representative value for the formability of formed surface, are proposed. Consequently, the shape error is in proportion to the punch size and is out of proportion to the objective curvature radius and the elastic pad thickness.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.196-203
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• 2013

Flexible stretch forming is an appropriate process for manufacturing of components for aerospace, shipbuilding and architecture structures. Flexible stretch forming has several advantages including that it could be applied to form various shapes such as ones with double curved surfaces. In this study, a systematic numerical simulation was conducted for forming double curved surfaces using flexible stretch forming. The desired surface had a saddle type configuration. It had two radii one of 2500mm and the other of 2000mm along its length and width. In the simulation, the decrease of elastic recovery due to the stretching was confirmed. Experiments were also conducted to confirm the viability of the process. By comparing the simulation to the experiment results, the suitability of flexible stretch forming for double curved surfaces was verified. From the results, the maximum error from desired surface was confirmed at about 1.3mm at the edge of the surface. Hence, it is confirmed that flexible stretch forming has the capability and feasibility to manufacture curved surfaces for architectural skin-structures of buildings.