Modelling Of Elastic Effects In Forming Processes, Particularly The Rolling Process.

Usually, in the finite element analysis of metal forming processes tools are assumed to be rigid. However, processes like flat rolling clearly show the necessity of taking into account elastic effects. The distribution of strip tension influences the shape of the rolling gap and vice versa. Considering all elastic effects in one finite element model of the rolling process leads to a very large model that is difficult to manage and suffers from severe numerical problems due to the multiple contact situations. Therefore, a concept is being developed that very efficiently meets the above demands. Elastic effects are computed separately and coupled with the simulation of the actual rolling process via data interchange. In this paper, experience with this iterative concept is shown concentrating on run-time, reliability of the results, and the convergence of the coupled elastic models and the conventional rolling process model. All algorithms have been implemented in the commercial nonlinear finite element code LARSTRAN/SHAPE. © 2004 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]