Principle # 7.
Pockets and Recesses:
Pockets and recesses are provided to save material, reduce the costs, promote the desirable
alignment of the fibrous macrostructure, and improve the mechanical properties, thus
achieving a higher degree of deformation, following are the recommendations:
(i) Recesses should never be perpendicular to the direction of metal flow.
(ii) Simple contour recesses, together with generous fillets should be preferred.
(iii)The depths of recess formed in dies are restricted to the maximum depth of the dies.
Principle # 8. Punch Out Holes:
Punch out holes is through holes produced in thin web, before forging process. They reduce the
net projected area of the forging and thus decrease the forging load required.
Following are the some design considerations:
(i) Iris recommended locating a punch out hole around the central area of a thin web.
(ii) Whenever possible, use a glitter around the periphery of a punch out.
(iii) A single large punch out is always advantageous than number of smaller ones that have the
same area.
(iv) Try to reduce number of punch outs.
(v) Try to avoid irregular contours with sharp corners.
10a) In the deep drawing process, a blank of sheet metal (usually circular) is placed on the die.
The die is fixed to the base. The metal blank is held in position on the die using blank holder.
Mechanical force is applied on the part of the metal blank above the die cavity through a punch.
As the punch force increases the metal flows from the flange region in to the die cavity.
Here is the Rule based DFM analysis for Deep drawing process. These rules can be incorporated
at the design stage to improve the efficiency of the process:
Material of Sheet Metal:
As the deep drawing is a cold forming operation, the germane properties of the sheet metal are
formability, ductility and yield strength. The material should have good formability and ductility
so that it can be drawn into the desired shape without any cracks. The yield strength of the
material should be low facilitating initiation of the flow of metal without tearing near the punch
radius.
Clearance between Punch and Die:
Clearance between the punch and die guides the flow of the metal into the die. Clearance should
be more than the metal thickness to avoid concentration of metal at the top of the die cavity.
Clearance should not be as large so that the flow of metal into the die region becomes
unrestricted leading to the wrinkling of wall.
Die corner radius:
Radius of curvature at the die where the metal enters from the flange region into the die region is
an important geometrical parameter. If the die corner radius is small than wrinkling near the
flange region becomes more prominent. Too small die corner radius results in cracks due to
sharp change in the direction of metal flow. Generally it should be 5-10 times the sheet
thickness.
Punch corner radius:
As the metal draws into the die the thickness of the sheet decreases near in the lower region of
the punch. Maximum reduction happens near punch corner because the metal flow decreases
significantly here. Too sharp corner results in cracks near the punch base. Corner radius of punch
should be 4-10 times the sheet thickness.
Blank holding force:
The friction in the flange region is mainly affected by blank holding force. Blank holding force is
required for checking the amount of the metal flow in to the die. The low value of blank holding
force results in wrinkling in the flange region and too high value of holding force results in
increase in the drawing force due to the increase in the friction between the flange region. The
blank holding force should be just enough to restrict the flow of the metal.
Drawing Ratio:
Measurement of the amount of drawing performed on a sheet metal blank is quantified using
drawing ratio. The higher the drawing ratio, the more extreme the amount of deep drawing. Due
to the geometry, forces, metal flow and material properties of the work, there is a limit to the
amount of deep drawing that can be performed on a sheet metal blank in a single operation. The
drawing ratio is roughly calculated as, DR = Db/Dp. Db is the diameter of the blank and Dp is
the diameter of the punch. For shapes that are noncircular the maximum diameter is sometimes
used, or occasionally drawing ratio is calculated using surface areas. The limit to the drawing
ratio for an operation is usually 2 or under .
10b)
The injection moulding process is widely used in large volume production as it produces
comparatively low scrap production and has high repeatability. The versatility of the injection
moulding process demands much broader design considerations. Most of the design
considerations will be made on the mould after setting out the product requirements.
Some of the factors that affect the injection moulding design include: how the part will be used
(singular product or for assembly), its dimensional and mechanical requirements, and its ability
to withstand elements such as chemicals or pressure. Some vital tips to consider when designing
for injection moulding are explored below.
1. Carefully choose materials suitable for your design
Different injection moulding materials offer varying properties. For example, some injection
moulding materials provide more dimensional stability than others. Similarly, some bond better
with adhesives than others. Material design considers the following: temperature, pressure,
biological and chemical interactions.
Thermoplastic resins can be broadly classified into amorphous and semi-crystalline. While semi-
crystalline thermoplastics offer better chemical and electrical resistance, their amorphous
counterparts are much more dimensionally stable and more resistant to impact. Material selection
can affect the required tolerance level or certain features, like wall thickness.
2. Take into account the part tolerance
Tolerances are affected by the shrinkage that occurs during the cooling process. Amorphous
materials like PLA generally have tighter tolerances than semi-crystaline materials like PEEK.
Tight tolerances make production more expensive, but they may be necessary for your part to fit
or function properly, especially if it is used in an assembly.
We recommend contacting your supplier at the design stage to discuss the tolerance standards
that they use.
For example, DIN 16901 contains a general tolerance table as a reference for different materials.
If your supplier uses this standard and you need tighter tolerances or other standards, they will
ask you to provide 2D drawings.
3. Choose the right wall thickness
There are a few key points to consider to ensure you choose the right wall thickness for your
injection moulding design:
Thinner walls shorten the cycle time and lower the cost of your part. For lots of
applications a wall thickness of 1.5-2.5 mm is sufficient, but you can also refer to
recommended wall thicknesses for different materials
Unlike CNC machined parts, plastic injection moulded parts benefit from a consistent
wall thickness. If a part is thicker in one section than another, a sink mark will appear at
that location.
Non-uniform wall thicknesses also lead to warping, as these walls cool and shrink at
different rates. If you require a non-uniform thickness, the change in thickness should not
