• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.16 no.8
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• pp.603-613
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• 2007

This paper is concerned with joining of thin metal sheets by single stroke clinching process. This method has been used in sheet metal work as it is a simple process and offers the possibility of joining similar-dissimilar thin sheet metals. Clinching generates a joint by overlapping metal sheets deforming plastically by punching and squeezing sequence. AA 5754 aluminum alloy of 0.5 mm thick sheets have been selected as a modal material and the process has been simulated under different process conditions and the results have been analyzed in terms of the quality of clinch joints which are influenced mainly by tool geometries. The rigid-plastic finite element method is applied to analyses in this paper. Analysis is focused mainly on investigation of deformation and material flow patterns influenced by major geometrical parameters such as die diameter, die depth, groove width, and groove corner radius, respectively. To evaluate the quality of clinch joints, four controlling or evaluation parameters have been chosen and they are bottom, neck thickness of bottom and top sheets, and undercut thickness, respectively. It has been concluded from the simulation results that the die geometries such as die depth and diameters are the most decisive process parameters influencing on the quality of clinch joints, and the bottom thickness is the most important evaluation parameter to determine if the quality of clinch joints satisfies the demand for industrial application.

• Journal of Practical Agriculture & Fisheries Research
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.57-71
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• 2015

This study was conducted to develop the fertigation system with a peristaltic hose pump and brushless DC motor. The fertigation system was consisted of sensor, main controller, motor control unit, peristaltic pump, water supply pump, control panel, and filter. The peristaltic pump discharges liquid by squeezing the tube with rollers. Rollers attached to the external circumference of the rotor compresses the flexible tube. The fluid is contained within a flexible tube fitted inside a circular pump casing. The developed fertigation system has no mixing tank but instead injects directly a concentrated nutrient solution into a water supply pipe. The revolution speed of the peristaltic pump is controlled by PWM (Pulse width modulation) method. When the revolution speed of the peristaltic pump was 300rpm, the flow rate of the 3.2, 4.8, 6.3mm diameter tube was 202, 530, 857mL/min, respectively. As increasing revolution speed, the flow rate of the peristaltic pump linearly increased. As the inner diameter of a tube larger, a slope of graph is more steep. Flow rate of three roller was more than that of four roller. Flow rate of a norprene tube with good restoring force was more than that of a pharmed tube. As EC sensor probe was installed in direct piping in comparison with bypass piping showed good performance. After starting the system, it took 16~17 seconds to stabilize EC. The maximum value of EC was 1.44~1.7dS/m at a setting value of 1.4dS/m. The developed fertigation system showed ±0.06dS/m deviation from the setting value of EC. In field test, Cucumber plants generally showed good growth. From these findings, this fertigation system can be appropriately suitable for fertigation culture for crops.