Reducing Workpieces to Their Base Geometry for Multi-Step Incremental Forming Using Manifold Harmonics

© 2018 Author(s). Single Point Incremental Forming is a flexible process that is well-suited for small batch production and rapid prototyping of complex sheet metal parts. The distributed nature of the deformation process and the unsupported sheet imply that controlling the final accuracy of the workpiece is challenging. To improve the process limits and the accuracy of SPIF, the use of multiple forming passes has been proposed and discussed by a number of authors. Most methods use multiple intermediate models, where the previous one is strictly smaller than the next one, while gradually increasing the workpieces' wall angles. Another method that can be used is the manufacture of a smoothed-out "base geometry" in the first pass, after which more detailed features can be added in subsequent passes. In both methods, the selection of these intermediate shapes is freely decided by the user. However, their practical implementation in the production of complex freeform parts is not straightforward. The original CAD model can be manually adjusted or completely new CAD models can be created. This paper discusses an automatic method that is able to extract the base geometry from a full STL-based CAD model in an analytical way. Harmonic decomposition is used to express the final geometry as the sum of individual surface harmonics. It is then possible to filter these harmonic contributions to obtain a new CAD model with a desired level of geometric detail. This paper explains the technique and its implementation, as well as its use in the automatic generation of multi-step geometries.

ISBN:9780735416635

Jaar van publicatie:2018

BOF-keylabel:ja

IOF-keylabel:ja

Authors from:Higher Education