Integrating a New Software Tool Used for Tool Path Generation in the Numerical Simulation of Incremental Forming Processes

In recent years, flexible manufacturing processes have gained increased attention from researchers and producers. Incremental sheet forming (ISF) is a “dieless” and flexible manufacturing process from the cold-pressing industry, used for customized products, rapid prototyping, and small batch production series of sheet metal parts [1] and [2]. The ISF working principle presented in Fig. 1 entails the sheet metal blank mounted on a fixing device consisting of a blank holder with or without a backing plate to support the part flange, and a clamping plate which is placed over the blank, fixing it most often by the tightening of several screws. The pack of plates is lifted to a greater height than the part depth, using various configurations of auxiliary components to ensure enough space below the blank to enable the part forming. Plastic forming is performed locally, usually by a simple shape tool with a hemispherical head [3], which is rotated by its axis, following a numerically controlled path. The part is divided into a number of layers from top to bottom, and at each layer the tool follows the CNC path, which is, in fact, the outer contour of the part. The distance between two consecutive layers is called an incremental step down (Δz). When one layer is completed, the tool descends by an incremental step and follows the part contour again. This operational stage is repeated until the final part is obtained [2] and [3]. The ISF process undergoes Integrating a New Software Tool Used for Tool Path Generation in the Numerical Simulation of Incremental Forming Processes Nasulea, D. – Oancea, G. Daniel Nasulea – Gheorghe Oancea* Transilvania University of Brasov, Department of Manufacturing Engineering, Romania