PLM: drawing no more secrets FOR AutoFORM

I met with AutoForm Engineering on the occasion of the release of AutoForm Plus R3, the latest version of their global digital planning tool for stamping process. The least we can say is that their software goes a long way in the details. 

AutoForm Engineering is a Swiss publisher, founded in 1995, specializing in simulation tools for stamping, whose roots date back to 1990 during early development of code done by Waldemar Kubli, the current CEO. 

The group now employs 242 people worldwide, including 85 developers and 75 applications engineers in 14 offices around the world. Its software has attracted more than 2500 users in 40 countries. The turnover of the group was of about 26 million euros in 2010, up 12.5% ​​and the prospect is + 15% for 2011, allowing the group to exceed 30 million €. Germany is the largest consumer products AutoForm Engineering, representing nearly 30% of sales. 

"France for its part weighs just under 10% with a turnover of around € 2.4 million, an increase of about 8%. But there are fewer car manufacturers, our main market and they are less fit apart from the Rhine, "says Vincent Ferragu, director of the French subsidiary. "But we should have a renewed interest from them in 2012 as we will shortly present their integration of AutoForm in Catia." Note also the recent investment of Segula Automotive has equipped to offer its services in the field of drawing with the manufacturers. 

Finally, note that for SMEs partial integration agreement was also signed with Autodesk, offering the module in its suite One Step Inventor EasyBlank as the Inventor. 

AutoForm Plus R3 covers the entire process 

AutoForm is more than just a tool for stamping simulation product line since it intends to treat the whole process from both a technical perspective, but also quality, cost and time. 

It covers all aspects of sheet metal forming: pre-generation range, rapid design tool surface; springback compensation, analysis of surface qualities, helps the development, process robustness, but also costs tools, materials and production. 

"Our goal is to offer a suite of tools that can help our customers to ensure the Global Digital Planning Process of drawing a vertical and a multidimensional approach that takes as much account of the functions and quality, as time and cost, "says Vincent Ferragu. 

AutoForm Plus R3 is the third version of the product line AutoForm Plus. It focuses on speed, accuracy and productivity. 

Faster 

It has such a new concept of pre-defined control parameters, to streamline the computation time per piece, the effectiveness of process engineering is thus increased significantly. 

"Following the progress of your project, it does not necessarily need to make accurate at all costs. We have defined three sets of parameters covering the different phases: CE for the rapid assessment of a concept; + EC to ensure the feasibility vis-à-vis the springback; FV for final validation. Just the operator to choose a simple check of the game setting for the job he does. The rest is automatic. This will provide the best compromise between speed and accuracy at all stages of the development process, leading generally to reduce the computation time accumulated per unit of about 50%. " 

One possibility that should help democratize these tools to users who are not specialists in digital tools but men stamping business experts. 

Material side, the calculations are parallelized on servers, in turn, was adapted to the latest multi-processor architectures. "Besides the fact that we now can work on 8 processors, we realized that some of our customers who have 4 processors do not want to use only 3 for the simulation in order to have the fourth for other work. To this end, this version R3, it becomes possible to work on three processors with only two licenses, licenses with 3 of 4 and 8 with five licenses, all by improving the speed of calculation. " 

More accurately 

To provide a more realistic analysis of potential folds during the feasibility phase advanced membrane element with bending effect (BE-M) has been improved to the feasibility phase advanced. "This allows a realistic calculation of contacts, shape and folds of the blank during forming, while ensuring the best possible compromise between speed and accuracy." An improvement that avoids work permanently in the shell elements with more intensive performance. 

For hot stamping, a new module integrates AutoForm-ThermoSolver including the simulation of quenching. "The goal is to determine whether the mechanical output drawing are those where expected, if we act locally and temporarily cool the matrix to improve them. For this, we predicted changes in metal phases of matter in every way, in order to deduce the mechanical properties in terms of hardness and elastic limit. And it acts on the cooling parameters to achieve the specifications by making differential quenching following areas. " Note that these results are used directly to''feed''the crash simulation tools. 

Such local optimizations of the material parts can consider developing mechanical parts whose characteristics will vary depending on the zone to meet different needs: areas''hard''to resist intrusion,''soft zones' 'to absorb the energy of a shock by crumple. 

Such approaches may ultimately affect nearly forty parts by vehicle body and cause them relief of nearly 20% while improving the overall functioning of the body. 

Another crucial point in the drawing, the final appearance of the parts. "It's important for consumers because it is what he sees, but the blemishes often appear in the painting of parts, very late in the manufacturing process. We have developed tools for analyzing the gradients of internal stresses of the room, whose experience to show the correlation with the appearance of blemishes. This analysis is weighted by the nature of the material and the local geometry of the room. An aluminum part strongly curved, will not present the same types of blemishes that flat piece of steel. " 

Such a tool makes''visible''from the upstream phases of the risk areas which may appear on blemishes. It is often sufficient to play on the process parameters (pressure rods held in the press for example) to more''soft''the blank and avoid the appearance of defects. Qu'AutoForm adjustments can simulate. 

More productivity 

R3 AutoForm Plus also offers a new method of systematic analysis to prevent springback. "We must try to understand why the piece is deformed and find parades. For this we determine the local stress and we try to limit them to reduce distortion. This requires different local artificial stiffening and comparison of behavior in order to better adjust the nature and positioning of local stiffening. " 

New process steps are also now available for innovative heat treatments applied during drawing of certain materials. "We can simulate heat treatment to recover from modifying the mechanical characteristics of the room, to restore the constraints to zero or reduced (recovery by raising the average temperature) between different stages of forming. We can thus benefit from the higher potential of forming lightweight materials and stainless steel. " 

Note finally the pre-announcement of a simulation module crimping AutoForm HemPlanner, of particular interest to French carmakers. "We are on the edge of field notes action. Crimping is the assembly, but assembly by deformation. " It has meant developing a new solver to obtain simulations within a reasonable time, because in addition to the large deformation, we drop the plate 120 degrees, the distance traveled by the wheels are important especially since it usually takes 3-4 passes to achieve the entire procedure. 

AutoForm brief acts as a''real''virtual press availability designers to guarantee them the upstream phases of design, the successful completion of their parts. 

See you next week

Jean-François Preveraud, Industry & Technology journalist and Usine Nouvelle, following over 30 years IT industry and especially for applications in the world of design (CFAO, TDM, Computing / Simulation, PLM ...). It was at the origin of the bimonthly newsletter Information Systems Technology, which was included in the weekly web letter, which he is now the editor.