On the inferences from the analyses of strain distributions in drawn sheet metal products

When a flat sheet is deformed into desired shape, a distribution of strain is created. It is the resultant outcome of a number of factors and their interactions, including the shape of the product, design of the tool, forming conditions and the material properties. While one would desire a very uniform strain all over the formed product, this is never achieved. Effects of material properties on the strain distribution for axisymmetric shapes have been documented. Quantification of strain distribution has been attempted by many but few applications of these are available in the literature. In the present work, methods of analysing the simulated strain distribution profiles obtained using the PAMSTAMP-2G software have been demonstrated to (a) perform process design for a drawn product and (b) explore the possibility of predicting the strain distribution of a full scale product based on a geometrically scaled down model.