Study on formability of incremental forming based on modified M–K method

Abstract

Incremental sheet metal forming (ISMF) is a dieless sheet forming process that has emerged over the last decade as an economic alternative for rapid manufacturing and small batch production. It has become one of the leading R&D topics in the industry. It was reported that the incremental sheet metal forming produces larger deformations as compared to the conventional forming processes. In this study, a theoretical method based on M–K analysis is presented to determine the forming limit curve (FLC) in this process. A case study is also given to demonstrate the proposed method.

Keywords:

• Forming limit curve
• Incremental forming
• Prestrain
• Modified M–K analysis

The presented research is partially supported by a grant from the University Grants Council of Hong Kong under the grant no. 44P5014.