In this work, the Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman (GTN) damage model is adopted to depict the material damage during the clinch joining process in a simulation-based theoretical model. The parameters of the GTN model which influence the void nucleation, growth and coalescence are identified. Their values of a specific material, C45E4 (ISO) steel, have been determined after carefully comparing the simulation results with the real sheet material tensile test. The established GTN damage model parameters are then imported into the simulation model to investigate the material damage during the mechanical clinch joining process. The Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulation results show promising, because the material’s initial damage position can be located and analyzed. For a given design, the initial fracture point was predicted which is located on the inner side of the clinched joint neck of the upper sheet, which matches with the results of the experimental test very well. It can be concluded that the incorporation of GTN damage model has extend the capability of the simulation model.
Experimental Investigation of Clinch Joining Process
