Development of a numerical compensation framework for geometrical deviations in bulk metal forming exploiting a surrogate model and computed compatible stresses

Abstract The optimal design of the tools in bulk metal forming is a crucial task in the early design phase and greatly affects the final accuracy of the parts. The process of tool geometry assessment is resource- and time-consuming, as it consists of experience-based procedures. In this paper, a compensation method is developed with the aim to reduce geometrical deviations in hot forged parts. In order to simplify the transition process between the discrete finite-element (FE) mesh and the computer-aided-design (CAD) geometry, a strategy featuring an equivalent surrogate model is proposed. The deviations are evaluated on a reduced set of reference points on the nominal geometry and transferred to the FE nodes. The compensation approach represents a modification of the displacement-compatible spring-forward method (DC-SF), which consists of two elastic FE analyses. The compatible stress originating the deviations is estimated and subsequently applied to the original nominal geometry. After stress relaxation, an updated nominal geometry of the part is obtained, whose surfaces represent the compensated tools. The compensation method is verified by means of finite element simulations and the robustness of the algorithm is demonstrated with an additional test geometry. Finally, the compensation strategy is validated experimentally.