Industry case study: process chain for manufacturing of a large hybrid hot stamping tool with conformal cooling channels
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Industry case study: process chain for manufacturing of a large hybrid hot stamping tool with conformal cooling channels R. Muvunzi 1 & D. Hagedorn-Hansen 1 & S. Matope 1 & X. Madyibi 1 & C. B. Swart 1 & M. Nagel 2 Received: 30 April 2020 / Accepted: 21 August 2020 / Published online: 27 August 2020 # Springer-Verlag London Ltd., part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract Conformal cooling channels introduced into manufacturing tools is fast becoming an industry standard, as it has proven to significantly reduce cycle time during operation. Introducing conformal cooling channels into a metal tool (such as a hot forming punch or injection moulding core) is a challenge on its own and often requires expertise in both additive and subtractive processes to execute efficiently. Another issue is that of the inherent constraints of both the additive and subtractive processes, which prohibit the effective use of these processes for manufacturing of specific tool designs. Thus, often a balance needs to be met, where a hybrid process is sought to utilise the advantages of both processes while limiting the disadvantages. This study suggests a viable process chain for manufacturing a large hybrid tool using milling and selective laser melting processes. A large (745 × 174 × 78.7 mm) hot forming punch with conformal cooling channels was produced by splitting the tool into four sections to fit into the build envelope of the M2 cusing machine from Concept Laser GmbH. Various considerations and challenges are highlighted. Keywords Conformal cooling . Punch . Hot stamping . Hybrid manufacturing . Process chain
1 Introduction The conventional method of drilling cooling channels in hot stamping tools prolongs the cooling period for parts with complex features. At least 30% of the cycle time is spent during the cooling phase [1]. Many of the studies regarding the design of tools with conformal cooling channels focus on injection moulding tools and there is limited literature on the design procedures for hot stamping tools. According to the results of a study on the manufacturing of a cutlery drainer tool for injection moulding, the cooling time was reduced by 31% using a tool with surface cooling channels [2, 3]. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the design and manufacture of a large hot stamping tool with conformal cooling channels. The first section of the paper explains the hot stamping process and the conformal cooling design. Secondly, the details of the simulation are given. Thirdly, the manufacturing process * S. Matope [email protected] 1
Department of Industrial Engineering, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa
2
Fraunhofer Institute for Machine Tools and Forming Technology IWU, Chemnitz, Germany
chain is described. This includes the challenges encountered during manufacturing and how they were resolved. Finally, the results of the tests on the conformal cooling tool are explained and compared with the conventional tool.
2 Hot stamping The hot stamping process is necessary for the pro
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