Not new but very obvious is to cover the entire design and planning process of stamping dies in 3D. What is already firmly established in metal-cutting production is only used in the rarest of companies to simplify design or press shop planning for forming operations. This may be due on the one hand to the high cost of using existing software and on the other hand to the lack of the right simulation tools.
For the tool designer it may therefore be the logical step in the development process to use existing CAD functionality for process animation or to extend the CAD application with additional licenses for kinematics simulation.
It is precisely this function, which is often already available, that leads to the creation of systematics within startup models or to the development of entire kinematics and the execution of collision checks in 3D, without the use of 2D interference curves. Certainly, this is already a great thing, which makes the application of interference curves obsolete and enables a consistent, low-error and faster throughput planning.
All too quickly, these benefits may make you forget the time spent on development and/or the license fees.
However, it is misleading to speak of a transfer simulation in this context. It is rather an animation of 3D geometry, either with fixed positions or according to a more or less fixed movement table.
It is exactly the adjustability and adaptability, however, that makes modern transfer or even servo presses stand out. In a real kinematic press simulation, the designer has not only the possibility to adapt the tool design but also to evaluate the machine integrated in it. In this way, new die designs are created with optimized geometry and die relocations become predictable and manageable.
Simulation of output-relevant transfer and press parameters enables optimization of the setting values in advance - this increases the press line availability and planning accuracy.
Press curves and machine setting values, for example transfer parameters such as the stroke and start & stop angles can be set according to the machine's capabilities. With no need to reposition geometry data or clearance curves, motion handling is handled by the software and displayed in 3D.
But not only this, additional movements such as a turning/tilting of the sheet parts or a pitch adjustment by a translatory axis can be easily and quickly checked within such a system.
The best thing for press shop planning, however, is the result of this. The planner knows the mastering machine component and thus the individual system that needs to be optimized.
In other words, the stroke rate is calculated in advance for each axis and the entire project, whether it is a new die design or a die relocation, can be evaluated.
It is this combination of simple adjustment of press parameters and virtual kinematic simulation that makes the difference between an animation and a real simulation.
Contact me for your next project of a new die or a relocation and let me convince you of the simplicity and the potential of a true press line simulation.
In addition to the virtual kinematic simulation of your tools, I can support you in the implementation of a best practice in the area of throughput planning as well as through workshops for the design of forming tools suitable for the press.