How to Build Flexible Design Automation Systems for Manufacturability Analysis of the Draw Bending of Aluminum Profiles

2011 ◽  
Vol 133 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel Johansson
Keyword(s):  
Design Automation ◽  
Single Step ◽  
Prototype System ◽  
Manufacturing Companies ◽  
Rotary Draw Bending ◽  
Forming Process ◽  
Automation Systems ◽  
Draw Bending ◽  
Production Preparation ◽  
Aluminum Profiles

Manufacturing companies continually need to develop and produce products faster, cheaper, and of better quality to meet requirements from customers and investors. One key factor in meeting these requirements is the efficiency of the product development and the production preparation processes. Design automation is a powerful tool for increasing the efficiency of these two processes. The benefits of automating manufacturability analyses, a part of the production preparation process, are shortened lead time, improved product performance, and ultimately decreased cost. Further, the automation is beneficial as it increases the ability to adapt products to new specifications since production preparations are done in few or in a single step. Extruded sections of aluminum (aluminum profiles) have many advantages, especially for light weight structural members, and are used in many products. Many times a secondary forming process, such as bending, is required when these materials are used. The intention of the work presented in this article has been to investigate how to automate the process of finding manufacturing limits of the rotary draw bending of aluminum profiles with focus on the system architecture needed to make such systems flexible. Finding the forming limits of an aluminum profile is not a trivial task. This is because the limits depend not only on the profile shape but also on the layout of the tool. Hence, simulations have to be done to evaluate different designs. A prototype system was developed to explore what was needed to automate simulation of the rotary draw bending of aluminum profiles, and subsequently, analyze the simulated production outcome with respect to wrinkling and developed length.

Automated Manufacturability Analysis of the Draw Bending of Complex Aluminum Profiles

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel Johansson
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element ◽  
Design Automation ◽  
Practical Experience ◽  
Single Step ◽  
Preparation Process ◽  
Manufacturing Companies ◽  
Automation Systems ◽  
Cad Models ◽  
Draw Bending ◽  
Production Preparation

Manufacturing companies are required to develop and produce products that meet increased requirements from customers and investors on shortened time spans. One key factor in meeting these requirements is the efficiency of the product development and the production preparation process. Design automation is a powerful tool to increase efficiency in these two processes. The benefits of automating the production preparation process are shortened lead-time, improved product performance, and ultimately decreased cost. Further, automation is beneficial as it increases the ability to adapt products to new product specifications with production preparations done in few or in a single step. During the automation process, knowledge about the production preparation process is collected and stored in the corporation systems, thus allowing full control over the design of production equipments. The contribution of this work is a method for connecting knowledge pieces implemented in auxiliary software applications using an inference engine. The knowledge pieces can control CAD-models and automatically generate, execute, and interpret finite element analyses. The presented method allows the automation of corporation know-how developed by skilled engineers over time. Further, it is possible for the resulting systems to meet criteria for good design automation systems such as low effort of developing, low level of investment, user readable and understandable knowledge, scalability, and flexibility. The method is exemplified by an implementation for analyzing manufacturability of the rotary draw bending of extruded sections of aluminum where the sections are complex. The output from the example system is based on established design practice and heuristic knowledge developed over many years of practical experience, rules analytically derived from fundamental physical laws, and finite element calculations. The system applies knowledge to a given specification that a skilled engineer otherwise would do manually. The method is described along with the example system in this paper.

A Flexible Design Automation System for Toolsets for the Rotary Draw Bending of Aluminium Tubes

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel Johansson
Keyword(s):  
Input Data ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Design System ◽  
Automation System ◽  
Rotary Draw Bending ◽  
User Friendliness ◽  
Forming Process ◽  
Knowledge Objects ◽  
Draw Bending ◽  
Production Preparation

For parts suppliers in the manufacturing industry, the process of preliminary production preparation and the subsequent calculation of offers are critical business activities. A vital part of production preparation is the design of fixtures and tooling necessary for many processes of metal forming. In order for a company to give quick responses to customer enquiries or changes in prior specifications, it would be highly beneficial with a degree of automation in this design process. This implies the development of a computer based system able to capture existing design procedures and associated knowledge for the classes of tooling required for the forming process. In this work, an implementation for the rotary draw bending of aluminum tubing has been done to exemplify how to develop an automated design system. The system is based on heuristic knowledge developed over many years of practical experience, knowledge analytically derived from fundamental theory found in scientific literature, and rules based on empirical data from trial manufacturing. The system applies knowledge to a given specification that a skilled engineer otherwise would do manually. The system output can be used to evaluate whether a tube is producible. The main idea behind the system is to use knowledge objects containing information on inputs, outputs, constraints and what software are used to implement the knowledge pieces. This approach makes the system highly flexible and allows for multiple types of knowledge that might overlap. When an offering calculation is wanted, the system is set to run applicable knowledge objects for presented input data. Other objects are run when an accurate calculation for detailing is wanted for a more detailed set of input data. The system is built on readily available commercial software packages connected with a simple Visual Basic .Net program. When building a system of this kind, it is essential that the knowledge documentation and structure be such that the functions of the system can be easily understood by the users of the system and by future developers. Aspects of user friendliness, transparency and scalability are addressed in the summary of this paper.

Multi-tool processing in the conditions of complex automation of technical processes

2021 ◽  
pp. 24-30
Author(s):  
A.B. Istomin ◽  
I.N. Gemba ◽  
I.V. Lizunov
Keyword(s):  
Production System ◽  
Design Automation ◽  
Complex Problem ◽  
Machine Building ◽  
Production Cycle ◽  
Elastic Deformations ◽  
Automation Systems ◽  
General Complex ◽  
Complex Automation ◽  
Production Preparation

The article analyzes the influence of errors from elastic deformations on the accuracy of processing in the conditions of complex automation. Different variants of multi-tool processing are considered: parallel processing, when different tools are alternately, one after the other, involved in the processing of the workpiece surfaces, and parallel-sequential processing, when different surfaces of the workpiece are processed simultaneously by several tools located in the working position. Design automation in machine-building production is part of the complex problem of automation of engineering work in all areas of the functioning of a modern production system. Therefore, when creating design automation systems, its connections in the general complex of automation of engineering activities in the production cycle should be taken into account. In general, the automation of the engineer's work is task planning, design and technological preparation of production, and management of the production system. The choice of favorable cutting modes for multi-tool processing is a difficult task, since, along with taking into account the features of each individual tool, it is necessary to make a general analysis of the entire setup, i.e. the set of tools used on the machine, and the distribution of processing transitions among them. Machine-building production is currently characterized by the desire to constantly update the range of released products. The requirements of multi-product manufacture can be met under the condition of its automation, which covers both the automation of production preparation and management. The article provides recommendations for reducing the error from elastic deformations in the conditions of complex automation. English version ofthe article is available at URL: https://panor.ru/articles/multi-tool-machining-in-complex-process-automation/65225.html

scholarly journals Deformation Property and Suppression of Ultra-Thin-Walled Rectangular Tube in Rotary Draw Bending

Metals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 1074
Author(s):  
Kunito Nakajima ◽  
Noah Utsumi ◽  
Yoshihisa Saito ◽  
Masashi Yoshida
Keyword(s):  
Wall Thickness ◽  
Weight Reduction ◽  
Electromagnetic Waves ◽  
Thin Wall ◽  
Rotary Draw Bending ◽  
Forming Process ◽  
Deformation Properties ◽  
Rectangular Tube ◽  
Lateral Constraint ◽  
Draw Bending

Recently, miniaturization and weight reduction have become important issues in various industries such as automobile and aerospace. To achieve weight reduction, it is effective to reduce the material thickness. Generally, a secondary forming process such as bending is performed on the tube, and it is applied as a structural member for various products and a member for transmitting electromagnetic waves and fluids. If the wall thickness of this tube can be thinned and the bending technology can be established, it will contribute to further weight reduction. Therefore, in this study, we fabricated an aluminum alloy rectangular tube with a height H0 = 20 mm, width W0 = 10 mm, wall thickness t0 = 0.5 mm (H0/t0 = 40) and investigated the deformation properties in the rotary draw bending. As a result, the deformation in the height direction of the tube was suppressed applying the laminated mandrel. In contrast, it was found that the pear-shaped deformation peculiar to the ultra-thin wall tube occurs. In addition, axial tension and lateral constraint were applied. Furthermore, the widthwise clearance of the mandrel was adjusted to be bumpy. As a result, the pear-shaped deformation was suppressed, and a more accurate cross-section was obtained.

scholarly journals Design of a fuzzy controller to prevent wrinkling during rotary draw bending

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Borchmann ◽  
Dominique Schneider ◽  
Bernd Engel
Keyword(s):  
Process Parameters ◽  
Fuzzy Controller ◽  
Cost Savings ◽  
Rule Base ◽  
Rotary Draw Bending ◽  
Forming Process ◽  
Human Decision Process ◽  
Bending Process ◽  
Draw Bending ◽  
Validation Tests

Rotary draw bending (RDB) is a forming process that is commonly used to bend tubes with small wall thicknesses and small bending radii. One of the limitations of this process is the formation of wrinkles caused by compressive stress on the inner bend. In order to design the bending process without wrinkles and to determine the necessary process parameters, adjustment tests are required. Within this work, a fuzzy controller is to be developed which automatically prevents the formation of wrinkles and thus eliminates the need for time-consuming set-up tests to determine the necessary process parameters. The fuzzy controller is based on fuzzy set theory and fuzzy logic. In connection with a rule base it is possible to simulate the human decision process. A fuzzy controller is programmed based on a max-min controller, with the required rules resulting from previous bending tests. After the fuzzy controller has been implemented, it must be connected to the bending machine by suitable interfaces. The input values, which indicate wrinkles, are measured by sensors during the bending process and provide the controller with data. The fuzzy controller then uses the control base to specify the required control variables. After programming has been completed, practical validation tests were carried out. In the validation tests using different tube wall thicknesses and materials, a significant reduction of wrinkles is achieved. Bending of completely wrinkle-free tubes is also possible due to the automated finding of optimal tool settings. Using the fuzzy controller eliminates the need for costly adjustment bends, resulting in significant time and cost savings.

Investigation of Neutral Axis Shifting in Rotary Draw Bending Processes for Tubes

2014 ◽  
Vol 85 (7) ◽  
pp. 1209-1214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernd Engel ◽  
Hassan Raheem Hassan
Keyword(s):  
Neutral Axis ◽  
Rotary Draw Bending ◽  
Draw Bending

Characteristics of Rotary Draw-Bent Tubes for the Hydroforming

2011 ◽  
Vol 213 ◽  
pp. 320-324
Author(s):  
Byeong Don Joo ◽  
Jeong Hwan Jang ◽  
Hyun Jong Lee ◽  
Young Hoon Moon
Keyword(s):  
Cross Section ◽  
Structural Strength ◽  
Dimensional Accuracy ◽  
Thickness Variation ◽  
Important Process ◽  
Rotary Draw Bending ◽  
Higher Dimensional ◽  
Bending Process ◽  
Geometric Size ◽  
Draw Bending

Hydroformed parts have higher dimensional accuracy, structural strength, and dimensional repeatability. The pre-bending process is an important process for the successful hydroforming in the case where the perimeter of the blank is nearly the same as that of final product. At initial pre-bending stage, the variations of wall thickness and cross-section have effects on the accuracy of final products and quality. Because of a relatively excellent productive velocity, geometric size precision and reliance of product qualities, rotary draw bending is widely used. This study shows the bendability such as cross-section ovality, springback ratio and thickness variation in the various conditions of materials.

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