Scalable Tool Design for 3D Swivel Bending

In industrial applications, established forming processes for series production are designed for the manufacture of annual lot sizes larger than 100,000 pieces. 3D swivel bending was developed for the economical production of smaller batches. As an extension to conventional swivel bending, variable cross-section geometries with curved bending edges and surfaces can be produced with a minimum of tools. To further increase flexibility of the process, variable shape-flexible tool concepts are developed. Investigations are carried out on the deformation behavior when using segmental tools, and calculation options for predicting the maximum degrees of deformation are derived. Based on these findings, different concepts for the design of a form-flexible tool for 3D swivel bending are developed. The concept developed makes use of many slim segments that can be moved transversely to the longitudinal direction of the bending axis. In this way, the tool setup can be scaled to handle variable component geometries, materials, and batch sizes. To ensure scalability to variable geometries, general calculation steps were developed for dimensioning the components, and design precautions were also taken to enable the forming of a higher-strength material. The characteristic feature for the form-flexible 3D swivel bending tool is the mapping of variable contours. To ensure that certain geometries can be produced reproducibly and accurately, the segments must be aligned precisely. For this purpose, a configurator was developed that can be adapted to the various bending tools and takes over the alignment of the segments under computer control.