Nine Reform Trends of Automobile Moulds
At present, there are nine major development trends in the global automobile die industry, namely: the CAE effect of the stamping forming process is becoming more prominent, the three-dimensional planning position of the die is stabilized, the digital die technology has become the mainstream direction, the rapid development of die processing automation, the high strength steel sheet stamping technology is the future development direction, the new mold commodity is launched on the spot, and the die material and appearance processing skills will become increasingly important The scientific and information management is the development direction of mold companies, and the fine manufacturing of molds is an inevitable trend.
The role of CAE in stamping process is becoming increasingly prominent
In recent years, with the rapid development of computer software and hardware, the imitation skills of stamping process (CAE) play an increasingly important role. In developed countries such as the United States, Japan and Germany, CAE skills have become a necessary link in the mold planning and manufacturing process. CAE skills are widely used to guess forming defects, optimize stamping skills and mold structure, improve the reliability of mold planning, and reduce the time for mold testing.
Many domestic car mold companies have also made remarkable progress in the application of CAE, and obtained outstanding roles. The application of CAE skills can greatly save the cost of mold testing and shorten the development cycle of stamping dies, which has become the primary means to ensure mold quality. CAE skills are gradually transforming mold planning from experience planning to scientific planning.
The position of 3D mold planning is stable
The 3D mold planning is the primary content of the digital mold skills, and is the foundation of the integration of mold planning, manufacturing and inspection. Japanese Toyota, American General Motors and other companies have completed the three-dimensional planning of the mold and achieved outstanding application. We should learn from some foreign practices in 3D mold planning. In addition to being conducive to the completion of integrated manufacturing, the 3D mold planning has another advantage, namely, it is convenient for interference and inspection, and can be used for motion interference and analysis, which solves a difficult problem in 2D planning.
Digital mold skills have become the mainstream
The digital mold skills developed rapidly in recent years are an effective way to deal with many questions in the development of car mold. The so-called digital mold skills refer to the application of computer skills or computer assisted skills (CAX) in the mold planning and manufacturing process.
Summarize the successful experience of domestic and foreign car mold companies in using computer assisted skills. Digital car mold skills mainly include the following aspects:
① DFM means thinking about and analyzing manufacturability in planning to ensure the success of skills.
② Assisting skills in mold surface planning, and developing intelligent surface planning skills.
③ CAE helps to analyze and simulate the process of stamping forming skills, guess and deal with possible shortcomings and forming questions.
④ The traditional 2D planning is replaced by 3D mold construction planning.
⑤ CAPP, CAM and CAT skills are selected for the mold making process.
⑥ Under the guidance of digital skills, handle the questions in the process of die testing and stamping production.
Rapid development of mold processing automation
Leading processing skills and equipment are the primary foundation for advancing productivity and ensuring commodity quality. Among the leading car mold companies, it is not uncommon to have CNC machine tools with double worktables, active tool changing equipment (ATC), photoelectric control system for active machining, and online measurement system for workpieces. NC machining has been developed from simple profile machining to all machining of profile and structural surface, from medium and low speed machining to high-speed machining, and the development of machining automation skills is very rapid.
High strength steel plate stamping skill is the future direction
High strength steel is increasingly used in cars due to its outstanding characteristics in yield ratio, strain hardening characteristics, strain distribution ability and collision energy absorption. At present, the high strength steels used in car stamping mainly include paint hardening steel (BH steel), dual phase steel (DP steel), transformation induced plasticity steel (TRIP steel), etc. 97% of the leading concept vehicle models (ULSAB-AVC) launched by the World Ultra Light Body Project (ULSAB) are high-strength steel. The proportion of leading high-strength steel plates in vehicle materials will exceed 60%, while the share of dual phase steel will account for 74% of vehicle steel plates. Nowadays, many selected mild steel series dominated by IF steel will be replaced by high-strength steel plate series, and high-strength low-alloy steel will be replaced by dual phase steel and ultra-high strength steel plate.
At present, the application of high-strength steel plates for domestic car parts is still mostly limited to structural parts and beam parts, and the tensile strength of the data used is mostly below 500MPa. Therefore, it is a primary question that the Chinese car die profession urgently needs to deal with to master the stamping skills of high-strength steel plates.
New mold products were launched immediately
With the development of high efficiency and automation of car stamping production, progressive die will be more widely used in the production of car stamping parts. Progressive die forming is increasingly used for stamping parts with disordered shapes, especially for small and medium-sized disordered stamping parts with multiple sets of dies punching in sequence according to traditional skill requirements.
Progressive die is a kind of mold commodity with high and new skills. It is difficult to use skills, requires high manufacturing accuracy and has a long production cycle. Multi station progressive die will be one of the key mold commodities in China.
Mold materials and surface treatment skills will become increasingly important
The quality and function of die materials are the primary factors affecting the quality, life and cost of dies. In recent years, in addition to the continuous introduction of a variety of cold work die steels with high resistance and high wear resistance, flame quenched cold work die steels, and powder metallurgy cold work die steels, the selection of cast iron materials for large and medium-sized stamping dies abroad is a development trend worthy of attention. Ductile iron has excellent resistance and wear resistance, and its welding function, machinability, surface quenching function are also good, and its cost is lower than alloy cast iron. Therefore, it is widely used in car stamping dies.
Scientific and information-based management is the development direction of mold companies
Another primary aspect of the development of automobile mold skills is the scientific and information management. The scientific management has enabled the mold company to continuously develop in the direction of Just in Time Manufacturing and Lean Production. The management of the company has become more accurate, the production power has advanced significantly, and ineffective organizations, links and personnel have been continuously streamlined.
With the advancement of modern management skills, many leading information management tools, including the company’s resource management system (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM), supply chain management (SCM), project management (PM), have been widely used in mold companies.
It is an inexorable trend to make fine molds
The so-called mold refined production is related to the mold development process and production results. It is shown in detail as follows: the rationalization of stamping skills and mold structure planning, the high precision of mold processing, the high reliability of mold commodities and the tightness of skill management. Fine mold making is not a single skill, but a reflection of planning, processing and handling skills. The completion of fine mold production depends not only on the exquisite craftsmanship, but also on the close handling.
