Incremental Cold Forming of Thermoplastics

• Applicant: Professor Dr.-Ing. A. Erman Tekkaya
• Subject Area: Primary Shaping and Reshaping Technology, Additive Manufacturing
• Term: from 2010 to 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 163373040

Thermoplastics are incrementally formable at room temperature. This flexible forming process is an economic alternative to conventional forming processes of thermoplastics, which are characterized by elevated temperature and part-dependent tooling. In the first phase of this research project, the aim was to develop the process of incremental cold forming of thermoplastics. As a significant extension of the state of the art, a process understanding of the mechanisms, formability and failure modes was obtained by means of experimental and numerical investigations. The work flowed in the establishment of an empirical process window, which defines a working area for forming components with large wall angles.However, the studies have shown that the geometrical deviation of the parts in the investigated process variation without die (single point incremental forming) is due material-related properties comparatively high and to this extent industrially uncompetitive.The aim of this research project is the production of complex parts with a given production accuracy using incremental forming. Hence there is a challenge of reducing the tolerances with already known but also new compensation methods. Due to promising and for lightweight construction interesting aspects, preliminary tests on metal-thermoplastic composite panels (sandwich panels) were performed. These materials should also be deployed in the sought funding period to provide an industrially competitive forming process.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants