Study on Scrap Reduction in Cold Forging During Ramp-Up Phases Through Actuator Control

Ramp-up phases right at the beginning of batch processing in cold-forging of high volumes are accountable for a significant amount of scrap due to transient process conditions. To understand the emerging impacts of transient effects during ramp-up phases on the final dimensional product properties more deeply, process conditions like forming load, part temperature and part geometry were monitored exemplarily in this study. Using measured data will enable the application of a sensor-based actuator control system to adjust some process parameters in cold forging. A newly developed adjustable wedge device is introduced allowing for continuous adjustment of the punch in-between subsequent strokes and a precise positioning of the punch in the working direction. Therefore, a reliable way to control transient process conditions is proposed, aiming to reduce the amount of scrap production and shorten the ramp-up phase timewise.