The present invention relates to a press forming method and a press apparatus.
A framework structure of an automobile is produced by joining a plurality of framework members obtained by press-forming a blank metal sheet. In recent years, from the viewpoint of reducing the weight of vehicle bodies and improving collision safety, framework members are being made thinner by utilizing ultra-high tension material as a blank metal sheet.
On the other hand, by making framework members (blank metal sheets) thinner as described above, the problem has arisen that the rigidity of the framework members decreases, and wrinkles occur during press forming. Therefore, press forming methods for solving this problem have been proposed.
For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method in which a pressed component having a top plate part, a vertical wall part and a flange part is press-formed from a blank metal sheet. In the method disclosed in Patent Document 1, press forming is performed in a state in which a portion that will be formed into the top plate part in the pressed component is pressed between a pad and a die, or a state in which a clearance between the pad and the die is maintained at a clearance equivalent to 1.1 times or less the thickness of the blank metal sheet.
Patent Document 1: WO 2011/145679
Patent Document 1 discloses that by performing press forming in the manner described above, during press forming, out-of-plane deformation of a portion to be formed into the top plate part is suppressed, and the occurrence of wrinkles is suppressed. However, during actual operation, due to reasons such as increased strength of the blank metal sheet and the performance of the press apparatus, in some cases the pressurizing force of the pad and the die cannot be sufficiently secured, and the clearance between the pad and the die cannot be appropriately maintained. In such a case, since the portion to be formed into the top plate part cannot be sufficiently restrained, buckling cannot be sufficiently suppressed and the occurrence of wrinkles cannot be sufficiently prevented. Therefore, the probability that formed products in which wrinkles occurred will be produced by press working increases, and as a result the proportion of formed products which are not suitable as products increases. On the other hand, when attempting to ensure the pressurizing force of the pad and the die and maintain the clearance therebetween, it is necessary to provide a higher load, which may lead to an increase in equipment cost and a decrease in the press tooling life. In addition, there is also a need for forming larger components than heretofore using a high-strength steel sheet, by integrating a plurality of components. The pressurizing force is the average interfacial pressure obtained by dividing the load applied to the metal sheet by the area of the contact portion between the pad and the metal sheet, and therefore the larger the component is, the greater the load that will be required to suppress the occurrence of wrinkles is, and the more difficult it will be to secure the pressurizing force.
Therefore, an objective of the present invention is to provide a press forming method and a press apparatus which can suppress the occurrence of wrinkles in a formed product, even in a case where it is difficult to control a distance between a pad and a die.
The gist of the present invention is a press forming method and a press apparatus which are described hereunder.
(1) A press forming method in which, assuming a thickness direction of a metal sheet to be a pressing direction, a die is arranged on one side of the metal sheet in the pressing direction, and a pad and a punch are arranged on another side of the metal sheet in the pressing direction, and press forming is performed on the metal sheet by means of the die, the pad and the punch, the method comprising:
a first step of pinching one part of the metal sheet by means of the die and the pad, and
a second step of, in a state in which the one part of the metal sheet is pinched by the die and the pad, moving the punch in a direction in which the punch approaches the die in the pressing direction relatively to perform press forming on the metal sheet, wherein:
the die has a first support surface which faces the pad in the pressing direction and which has an edge including a curved portion that curves so as to be recessed in an arc shape as viewed from the pressing direction, and a wall surface extending to the one side in the pressing direction from the edge of the first support surface;
the pad has a second support surface which faces the first support surface in the pressing direction;
the punch is provided on an opposite side to the first support surface with respect to the wall surface as viewed from the pressing direction;
the first support surface includes a first flat portion which extends in an orthogonal direction to the pressing direction, and a first deformation portion which protrudes or is recessed with respect to the first flat portion in the pressing direction;
the second support surface includes a second flat portion which faces the first flat portion in the pressing direction, and a second deformation portion which is recessed or protrudes with respect to the second flat portion so as to correspond to the first deformation portion;
the first deformation portion is provided on a normal line of the curved portion, as viewed from the pressing direction;
the first flat portion is provided continuously on both sides of the first deformation portion in a direction along the curved portion, as viewed from the pressing direction; and
when a space between the first deformation portion and the second deformation portion is assumed to be a deformation space,
in the second step, press forming is performed so that portions of the metal sheet which are on both sides of the deformation space in the direction along the curved portion as viewed from the pressing direction flow into the deformation space, and the metal sheet deforms along the first deformation portion and the second deformation portion in the deformation space.
(2) The press forming method according to the above (1), wherein the first deformation portion includes at least one part of the curved portion.
(3) The press forming method according to the above (2), wherein a length of a part of the curved portion that is included in the first deformation portion is 0.3 times or more an overall length of the curved portion.
(4) The press forming method according to any one of the above (1) to (3), wherein, in the second step, the metal sheet in the deformation space deforms so as to form a single arc in a cross section orthogonal to the normal line of the curved portion as viewed from the pressing direction.
(5) The press forming method according to any one of the above (1) to (4), wherein, a height or a depth of the first deformation portion with respect to the first flat portion in the pressing direction decreases as the first deformation portion extends away from the curved portion in a direction parallel to the normal line.
(6) The press forming method according to any one of the above (1) to (5), wherein, in a cross section obtained by cutting the die and the metal sheet along a plane parallel to the pressing direction and passing through the normal line, a length of the first deformation portion in a parallel direction to the normal line is 0.1 times or more a length of the one part of the metal sheet that is pinched by the die and the pad in the first step.
(7) The press forming method according to any one of the above (1) to (6), wherein, as viewed from the pressing direction, when a portion at which a curvature of the curved portion exhibits a local maximum value is assumed to be a reference point, the first deformation portion is provided on a normal line of the curved portion at the reference point.
(8) The press forming method according to the above (7), wherein the first deformation portion is provided so as to include the reference point of the curved portion.
(9) The press forming method according to the above (8), wherein, in a cross section of the die that is parallel to the pressing direction and that passes through a tangential line of the curved portion at the reference point, a height or a depth of the first deformation portion with respect to the first flat portion in the pressing direction is 0.0001 times or more a length of the first deformation portion in a direction orthogonal to the pressing direction.
(10) The press forming method according to any one of the above (1) to (9), wherein, before the first step, the metal sheet is subjected to predetermined forming processing.
(11) The press forming method according to any one of the above (1) to (10), wherein:
a holder is further arranged on the one side of the metal sheet in the pressing direction;
in the first step, the metal sheet is further pinched by the punch and the holder; and
in the second step, in a state in which the metal sheet is pinched by the punch and the holder, the punch is moved in a direction in which the punch approaches the die in the pressing direction relatively to perform press forming on the metal sheet.
(12) The press forming method according to any one of the above (1) to (11), wherein:
the first deformation portion protrudes with respect to the first flat portion in the pressing direction;
the second deformation portion is recessed with respect to the second flat portion in the pressing direction; and
a central portion of the second deformation portion in the direction along the curved portion is curved in a curved surface shape.
(13) The press forming method according to any one of the above (1) to (11), wherein:
the first deformation portion is recessed with respect to the first flat portion in the pressing direction;
the second deformation portion protrudes with respect to the second flat portion in the pressing direction; and
a central portion of the first deformation portion in the direction along the curved portion is curved in a curved surface shape.
(14) A press apparatus that includes the die, the pad and the punch used in the press forming method according to any one of the above (1) to (13).
(15) The press apparatus according to the above (14), further including a holder that is arranged so as to face the punch in the pressing direction.
According to the present invention, the occurrence of wrinkles in a formed product can be suppressed, even in a case where it is difficult to control the distance between a pad and a die.
Hereunder, a press forming method and a press apparatus according to embodiments of the present invention are described while referring to the accompanying drawings.
(Formed Product)
First, a formed product that is produced utilizing the press forming method according to the present invention will be briefly described.
As illustrated in
A curved portion 18a that curves so as to be recessed in an arc shape as viewed from a pressing direction X is formed at a boundary part 18 between the first plate-shaped part 12 and the vertical wall part 16. Further, in the present embodiment, a curved portion 20a that curves so as to be recessed in an arc shape as viewed from the pressing direction X is also formed at a boundary part 20 between the second plate-shaped part 14 and the vertical wall part 16. In the present embodiment, the boundary parts 18 and 20 each have an L-shape as viewed from the pressing direction X. In the present embodiment, the formed product 10 has an L-shape as viewed from the pressing direction X.
Next, a press forming method and a press apparatus used in the press forming method according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, the press apparatus will be described.
(Press Apparatus)
As illustrated in
Note that, the shape of a metal sheet serving as the starting material is appropriately changed according to the shape of the formed product. Further, although a case where the press forming method according to the present invention is performed on a tabular metal sheet is described hereunder, the press forming method according to the present invention may be performed using a metal sheet subjected to predetermined forming processing as a starting material. Accordingly, after arbitrary press forming processing has been performed on a tabular metal sheet, the press forming method according to the present invention may be performed with respect to the metal sheet in question.
The press apparatus 22 has a die 24, a pad 26 and a punch 28. In the present embodiment, in the pressing direction X, the die 24 is arranged on one side of the metal sheet 100 (in the present embodiment, below the metal sheet 100), and the pad 26 and the punch 28 are arranged on the other side of the metal sheet 100 (in the present embodiment, above the metal sheet 100). As described later, in the present embodiment, by causing the die 24 and the punch 28 to move in directions in which they relatively approach each other in the pressing direction X, the first plate-shaped part 12, the second plate-shaped part 14, and the vertical wall part 16 are formed. Note that, each component (the die 24, the pad 26 and the punch 28) of the press apparatus 22 can be manufactured using the same material as the material of a known press tooling. Further, each component of the press apparatus 22 can be driven by the same kind of drive mechanism (an electric cylinder, a hydraulic cylinder, or a gas cushion apparatus) as the drive mechanism of a known press apparatus.
As illustrated in
The edge 30 of the support surface 24a includes a curved portion 30a that curves so as to be recessed in an arc shape as viewed from the pressing direction X. The edge 30 is provided so as to correspond to the boundary part 18 (see
The support surface 24a includes a flat portion 34a that extends in an orthogonal direction to the pressing direction X, and a deformation portion 34b that protrudes to the other side in the pressing direction X from the flat portion 34a. As viewed from the pressing direction X, the flat portion 34a is provided continuously on both sides of the deformation portion 34b in a direction Y (see
The deformation portion 34b is provided on a normal line at an arbitrary position of the curved portion 30a as viewed from the pressing direction X. In the present embodiment, as illustrated in
From the viewpoint of sufficiently suppressing the occurrence of wrinkles at the curved portion 18a in the formed product 10, the deformation portion 34b is preferably provided so as to include at least one part of the curved portion 30a. Further, from the viewpoint of reliably suppressing the occurrence of wrinkles at the curved portion 18a in the formed product 10, the length of a part of the curved portion 30a which is included in the deformation portion 34b is preferably 0.3 times or more the overall length of the curved portion 30a. In the present embodiment, the deformation portion 34b is formed so as to include the reference point of the curved portion 30a. In this case, the occurrence of wrinkles in the vicinity of the central portion of the curved portion 18a (a portion at which wrinkles are liable to occur) in the formed product 10 can be sufficiently suppressed. In the present embodiment, the deformation portion 34b is provided so as to include the entire curved portion 30a. Note that, in the present embodiment, for example, a portion that has a curvature of 1% or more with respect to the curvature of the aforementioned reference point and is continuous therewith is defined as the curved portion 30a, and the length of the curved portion 30a is defined. Specifically, for example, as viewed from the pressing direction X, in a case where the radius of curvature of the curved portion 30a at the reference point is 50 mm, a portion having a radius of curvature of 5000 mm or less that is continuous with the reference point is defined as the curved portion.
Referring to
In the present embodiment, in a cross section of the die 24 that is parallel to the pressing direction X and passes through the tangential line tL (a cross section obtained by cutting the die 24 in the pressing direction X along the tangential line tL), the height H is preferably set to 0.0001 times or more the length L. Further, the radius of curvature R is preferably set to, for example, 1,000 mm or more and 10,000 mm or less, and more preferably is set to 2,000 mm or more and 5,000 mm or less.
Note that, although a detailed description is omitted herein, the depth in the pressing direction X of a deformation portion 38b with respect to a flat portion 38a to be described later is set in a similar manner to the height H of the deformation portion 34b. Further, a length in an orthogonal direction to the pressing direction X and a radius of curvature of the deformation portion 38b are also set in a similar manner to the length L and the radius of curvature R of the deformation portion 34b.
Referring to
As illustrated in
Referring to
The undersurface 26a of the pad 26 includes the flat portion 38a which faces the flat portion 34a in the pressing direction X, and the deformation portion 38b which is recessed with respect to the flat portion 38a so as to correspond to the deformation portion 34b. In the present embodiment, the deformation portion 38b is formed so as to be recessed toward the other side in the pressing direction X from the flat portion 38a. The deformation portion 38b is provided so as to face the deformation portion 34b in the pressing direction X. More specifically, the deformation portion 34b and the deformation portion 38b are formed so that they can be fitted to each other. Note that, a central portion of the deformation portion 38b in the direction Y along the curved portion 30a is preferably curved in a curved surface shape so as to be convex toward the other side in the pressing direction X. In the present embodiment, as illustrated in
Referring to
(Press Forming Method)
Next, a press forming method that uses the aforementioned press apparatus 22 will be described. When performing press forming on the metal sheet 100 using the press apparatus 22, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
As illustrated in
In a state in which the first portion 12a of the metal sheet 100 is pinched between the die 24 and the pad 26 as described above, the punch 28 (undersurface 28a) is moved in a direction in which the punch 28 (undersurface 28a) approaches the die 24 (support surface 24a) relatively in the pressing direction X (second step). By this means, as illustrated in
Note that, in a case of forming the formed product 10 using the metal sheet 100 having a tensile strength within the range from 200 MPa to 1600 MPa that is generally used for automobile components and the like, if the metal sheet 100 is pressed with a pressure of 30 MPa or more by the pad 26, there is a risk that a crack will occur in the vicinity of the curved portion 20a in the formed product 10. On the other hand, if the metal sheet 100 is pressed with a pressure of 0.1 MPa or less by the pad 26, there is a risk that it will not be possible to sufficiently suppress out-of-plane deformation of the first plate-shaped part 12. Therefore, it is desirable that the pressing by the pad 26 be performed with a pressure that is 0.1 MPa or more and 30 MPa or less.
Note that, the pressure applied from the pad 26 to the metal sheet 100 is an average interfacial pressure that is obtained by dividing the load applied to the metal sheet 100 from the pad 26 by the area of the contact portion between the pad 26 and the metal sheet 100. Therefore, the larger the component is, the greater the pad load that is required is.
In the present embodiment, in the second step, as illustrated by dashed-line arrows in
With regard to the aforementioned point, for example, even in a case where press forming is performed in a state in which the portions of the first portion 12a of the metal sheet 100 which are in the vicinity of the curved portion 30a are pinched by flat surfaces 50a and 50b as illustrated in
On the other hand, in the present embodiment, as illustrated in
Further, in the present embodiment, in the second step, upon the metal sheet 100 flowing into the deformation space 11 from both sides of the deformation space 11, the metal sheet 100 inside the deformation space 11 is first bent so as to be convex to the other side in the pressing direction X by the deformation portion 34b. The portion that has been bent is then pressed to the one side in the pressing direction X by the deformation portion 38b. Therefore, in the present embodiment, even if the clearance between the support surface 24a of the die 24 and the undersurface 26a of the pad 26 cannot be made sufficiently small, because the metal sheet 100 bends as described above in the deformation space 11, the region of the metal sheet 100 that is inside the deformation space 11 as well as portions surrounding that region are appropriately pressed by the support surface 24a and the undersurface 26a. By this means, in the present embodiment, even without exactly adjusting the pressurizing force of the support surface 24a and the undersurface 26a and the clearance between the support surface 24a and the undersurface 26a, a sufficient pad load can be applied to the first portion 12a of the metal sheet 100. Thus, according to the present embodiment, by causing the metal sheet 100 to curve in the deformation space 11, even in a case where it is difficult to control the distance between the die 24 and the pad 26, it is possible to apply a sufficient pad load to the metal sheet 100. As a result, the occurrence of wrinkles in the first plate-shaped part 12 in the formed product 10 can be suppressed.
Note that, it is preferable that the central portion of the deformation portion 38b in the direction Y along the curved portion 30a is curved in a curved surface shape so as to be convex toward the other side in the pressing direction X. By this means, the metal sheet 100 can be caused to gradually curve more reliably in the deformation space 11, and the metal sheet 100 can be sufficiently prevented from deforming in a wavy manner. In the present embodiment, in a cross section that is parallel to the pressing direction X and parallel to the tangential line tL of the curved portion 30a, the central portion of the deformation portion 38b is curved in a curved surface shape so as to be convex toward the other side in the pressing direction X.
Note that, in the present embodiment, the deformation portion 34b is provided on the normal line nL of the curved portion 30a. In this case, the metal sheet 100 can be caused to deform in the manner described above at a position at which the inflow amount of the metal sheet 100 is liable to be large between the die 24 and the pad 26. By this means, the occurrence of wrinkles can be sufficiently suppressed at the position at which the inflow amount of the metal sheet 100 is liable to be large between the die 24 and the pad 26.
(Modifications)
Note that, as illustrated in
Further, although in the foregoing embodiment, as illustrated in
Further, although in the foregoing embodiment, as illustrated in
Furthermore, for example, as illustrated in
Further, although a detailed description is omitted herein, the shape of the deformation portion 38b can be appropriately changed so as to correspond to the respective shapes of the deformation portion 34b illustrated in
Furthermore, although in the foregoing embodiment, in the pressing direction X, the deformation portion 34b is formed so as to protrude with respect to the flat portion 34a, and the deformation portion 38b is formed so as to be recessed with respect to the flat portion 38a, the deformation portion 34b may be formed so as to be recessed with respect to the flat portion 34a, and the deformation portion 38b may be formed so to protrude with respect to the flat portion 38a. In this case also, the dimensions (height in the pressing direction X, length in the direction orthogonal to the pressing direction X, and radius of curvature) and shape of each deformation portion can be set similarly to the dimensions and shape of the deformation portions 34b and 38b described above. Note that, in the case of making the deformation portion 34b recessed with respect to the flat portion 34a, the central portion of the deformation portion 34b in the direction Y along the curved portion 30a is preferably curved in a curved surface shape so as to be convex toward the one side in the pressing direction X.
Note that, although in the foregoing embodiment a case of producing the formed product 10 having an L-shape as viewed from the pressing direction X has been described, the press forming method according to the present invention can be favorably utilized when producing various kinds of formed products having a curved portion which, as viewed from the pressing direction, curves in a concave shape at a boundary part between a first plate-shaped part and a vertical wall part.
Although a detailed description is omitted herein, similarly to the formed product 10 described above, a formed product 10a illustrated in
Furthermore, although a detailed description is omitted herein, the press forming method according to the present invention can also be utilized when producing a formed product 10b having a T-shape as viewed from the pressing direction as illustrated in
Further, although diagrammatic representation is omitted from the drawings, the press forming method according to the present invention can also be utilized when producing a formed product having a Y-shape or a U-shape as viewed from the pressing direction. In addition, the press forming method according to the present invention can also be utilized for various kinds of draw forming such as cylinder drawing and square cylinder drawing. Note that, when utilizing the present invention for cylinder drawing, it is preferable to, for example, identify in advance a region at which wrinkles are liable to occur in a portion that will be a flange part (first plate-shaped part) in the formed product, and provide a deformation portion so as to correspond to the identified region.
Further, although a case in which the support surface 24a of the die 24 has the flat portion 34a and the deformation portion 34b is described in the foregoing embodiment, the support surface 24a may also have another deformation portion in addition to the deformation portion 34b. Although diagrammatic representation is omitted from the drawings, for example, in order to form a bead or a bearing surface shape or the like in the first plate-shaped part 12 (see
(Study by Simulation)
In order to confirm the advantageous effect of the present invention, the present inventors evaluated the occurrence state of wrinkles which occur at a portion in the vicinity of the curved portion 18a (see
Note that, in a first analysis, the load of the pad 26 (pad load) was changed, and numerical analysis was performed for each pad load. The pad load was set to 7 tonf, 10 tonf and 30 tonf, respectively. Note that, with respect to Inventive Example 3 of the present invention, analysis was not performed for cases where the pad load was 10 tonf and 30 tonf. In a second analysis, the distance (pad clearance) between the support surface 24a and the undersurface 26a was changed, and numerical analysis was performed for each pad clearance. The pad clearance was set to a clearance equivalent to 1.00 times, 1.03 times, 1.05 times and 1.10 times the thickness of the blank metal sheet, respectively. Note that, the second analysis was not performed with respect to Inventive Example 3 of the present invention. Evaluation results obtained by the first analysis are shown in Table 1, and evaluation results obtained by the second analysis are shown in Table 2. Note that, in the evaluation results shown in Table 1, the amount of wrinkles that occurred at the portion in the vicinity of the curved portion 18a is described in ascending order in the form of A, B and C. Similarly, in the evaluation results shown in Table 2, the amount of wrinkles that occurred at the portion in the vicinity of the curved portion 18a is described in ascending order in the form of A and B.
Referring to Tables 1 and 2, the occurrence of wrinkles could be suppressed to a certain extent in the Comparative Example also. However, the amount of wrinkles that occurred was smaller in Inventive Examples 1 to 3 of the present invention. In particular, in Inventive Examples 1 and 2 of the present invention, almost no wrinkles occurred, even when the pad load was decreased. Further, in Inventive Examples 1 and 2 of the present invention, even without strictly managing the pad clearance, almost no wrinkles occurred. Note that, in the Comparative Example, even though the same B evaluation was obtained as the result, the amount of wrinkles that occurred increased as the pad clearance increased.
In other words, it is considered that, in actual operations, if an apparatus such as that of the Comparative Example is used, a large number of formed products in which wrinkles have occurred will be produced, and it is considered that by using an apparatus such as that of the Inventive Examples of the present invention, the probability of producing a formed product in which wrinkles have occurred will be extremely low, and stable production can be expected and the production efficiency as a product increases. Further, since it is difficult for wrinkles to occur even if the pad load is small, it is considered that it is easy to support the forming of large-sized components.
Although in the foregoing embodiment a case is described in which press forming is performed on the metal sheet 100 using the press apparatus 22 including the die 24, the pad 26 and the punch 28, the configuration of the press apparatus is not limited to the example described above.
As illustrated in
The die 25 has an L-shape in plan view. Similarly to the die 24, the die 25 has the support surface 24a including the flat portion 34a and the deformation portion 34b, and the wall surface 24c. Further, similarly to the die 24, the edge 30 of the support surface 24a has the curved portion 30a. Note that, the support surface 24b (see
The holder 40 is provided on the one side of the metal sheet 100 in the pressing direction X. A top surface 40a of the holder 40 faces the second portion 14a of the metal sheet 100 in the pressing direction X.
As illustrated in
Although a detailed description is omitted herein, in the press forming method according to the present embodiment also, similarly to the press forming method according to the first embodiment, a portion in the vicinity of the curved portion 30a (see
In addition, in the present embodiment, press forming is performed in a state in which the second portion 14a of the metal sheet 100 is pinched by the punch 28 and the holder 40. By this means, the occurrence of wrinkles at the second plate-shaped part 14 in the formed product 10 can be suppressed.
Note that, in the present embodiment also, similarly to the foregoing embodiment, the shapes and dimensions of the deformation portion 34b and the deformation portion 38b (see
Further, the press forming method according to the present embodiment can also be favorably utilized when producing various kinds of formed products having a curved portion which, as viewed from the pressing direction, curves in a concave shape at the boundary part between the first plate-shaped part and the vertical wall part.
According to the present invention, the occurrence of wrinkles in a formed product can be suppressed, even in a case where it is difficult to control a distance between a pad and a die.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2019-011631 | Jan 2019 | JP | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/JP2020/002618 | 1/24/2020 | WO | 00 |