Roll form tooling design for air bending

Selecting a techique for reduced distortion

By Hanhui Li
April 10, 2007
Several techniques are used commonly to reduce profile distortion when air bending with a
roll former. hese include small!radius forming, false bending, vertical side rolls, and angle
side rolls.
"hen a bend is formed with the air bending process #air bend$, the interior of the bending corner can%t be
reached by either the top roll or the bottom roll, ma&ing it difficult to control the part%s profile and dimensions.
'igure 1 illustrates a typical air bend. he theoretical formed profile is the desired profile. he actual formed
profile is the finished part, which was distorted because the top roll couldn%t reach the interior corner to hold
it in position. he bottom roll flange lifted the section and distorted the profile. Several techniques can
reduce such distortion in parts formed by air bending.
The Small-radius Forming Technique
Figure 1
Scoring, grooving, beading, perforating, and interruptive slitting are techniques that can reduce distortion in air
bending.
'orming a radius smaller than the metal thic&ness is a suitable technique for the air bend in Figure 1.
Scoring, grooving, beading, perforating, or interruptive slitting wea&ens the bending trac&. Scoring is the
most commonly used technique. he score depth should not be deeper than one!third the metal thic&ness in
cold roll forming applications. (f the score is deeper than one!third the metal thic&ness, the metal may brea&
at the scored trac&. (n hot roll forming, a grooving trac& is easy to form and prevents corner crac&ing.
he beading technique is suitable for thin metal applications. )eading doesn%t brea& the protective coating
and doesn%t reduce the thic&ness at the bent section.
A rotary punch performs perforating or interruptive slitting.
The False-bend Technique
Figure 2
wo e*amples of the false!bend technique show how the bottom section is curved to allow the top roll to ma&e the
+0!degree angle at the left side of the part.
he false!bend technique e*poses the blind bend #the air bend$ to the top roll or bottom roll by curving a
straight section #see Figure 2$. After the section is curved, the top roll can physically reach the interior bend
and form it to +0 degrees precisely. he station after the false!bend station flattens the curve. ,sually the
false!bend design needs an additional station.
The Vertical Side Roll Technique
Figure
A single vertical side roll #A$ is better than using conventional rolls. wo vertical side rolls #) and -$ provide more
precision than a single side roll does.
he vertical side roll located at the outside of the bend is the outer side roll. he forming force from the outer
side roll has the same direction as the bending action. (t forms a better!quality bend than the conventional
rolls in 'igure 1. he vertical side roll located at the inside of the bend is the inner side roll. he function of
the inner side roll is forming the desired radius at the bend.
he single roll design in Figure ! cannot control the radius dimension because tooling cannot reach the
inner corner. he double side roll design in Figure B forms the profile and the dimension more accurately
than the roll design in .A.
he side rolls, which are mounted in the same central line plane as the conventional rolls, are called
stationary side rolls, as shown in 'igure .A and 'igure .). he stationary side rolls and conventional rolls
form a rotational e*trusion head that squee/es the formed section from all directions0 up, down, left, and
right. his e*trusion process provides strict control over the profile and dimension.
Single side rolls and double side rolls can be mounted before the conventional roll station #see Figure "$.
his arrangement allows more space for large side rolls.
The !ngle Side Roll Technique
Figure #
Angle side rolls can reach the inside corner #A$ and the outside corner #)!1$ for precise bending.
he inner angle side roll can contact the inner bend on both the vertical and hori/ontal surfaces to form a
small and accurate bending radius. he single side roll in Figure #! is referenced to the bottom roll. wo!
angle side rolls are shown in Figure #B. he concave top roll in Figure #" provides more forming contact
surface, if needed.
he double angle side rolls can be mounted before the conventional roll station, as shown in Figure #$.
his is similar to 'igure .- in that it provides more space for large side rolls.
Stationary %andrel
Figure &
A roller mandrel is mounted to the roll stand. (t is inset into a conventional roll to form an air bend.
(n many cases an air bend can be accomplished effectively with a stationary solid mandrel mounted in a
conventional roll #see Figure &$. (t combines both the roll and mandrel features. he roller and mandrel are
attached to the roll stand. he roller is captive. he hole on the mandrel is more than a half circle, which
&eeps it in place hori/ontally, and the set screw prevents the roller from escaping vertically.
Hanhui Li is senior engineer with Worthington Armstrong Venture (WAVE), 9 Old Lincoln Highway, Suite
2, !al"ern, #A $9%&&, '$()22($2%2, hanhui*li+armstrong,com,
Reference
-eorge ., Halmos, /oll 0orming Hand1oo2 (.oronto3 .aylor 4 0rancis -rou5, 2'),
2anhui 3i
Senior 4ngineer,
"orthington Armstrong 5enture
2anhui 3i is senior engineer with "orthington Armstrong 5enture #"A54$, + 6ld 3incoln 2ighway, Suite 200,
7alvern, 8A 1+.99, :10!722!12.2. 'orthingtonindustries(com
hanhui)li*armstrong(com
BASIC ROLL-FORM TOOLING
DESIGN:
PROCESS OVERVIEW, INSTRUCTION
AND TIPS
1.0 INTRODUCTION
This paper is intended to provide
basic roll tooling design instruction
and tips for the beginning or novice
designer. In my experience, the ideas
expressed in this report can be applied
to many situations but I will stop
short of claiming that these are the only solutions. Many roll designers have different
approaches to both design and development (testing of tooling, and ama!ingly enough,
there is more than one way to successfully form a profile. "owever, there are common
design practices that must be understood and applied to the design process, coupled
with a certain degree of magic (gained through previous experiences.
In other words, a mixture of science and art is still very prevalent today in this industry.
#or a roll design, considering all the variables and applying theory whenever possible
is vital in producing a good running product, with minimal start$up problems. %ecause
the roll forming process has a seemingly limitless capacity to produce complex profiles
with &ust as many variables, a high percentage of designs are one$of$a$'ind. This is why
theory can only go so far. (ast experiences, correctly applied, are still the 'ey ingredients
to the design and development of
these applications.
More commonly formed, or basic shapes, tend to have fewer variables and limitations,
which in turn have higher levels of results which are both theoretical and repeatable. )ith
this in mind, we will only scratch the surface in this basic design guide. The basics are
essential for the beginning designer.
2.0 DESIGN PROCESS OVERVIEW
#or each new tooling re*uirement, the designer should use the following steps+
,. -evelop a cross$sectional drawing (with part, material and mill specifications .
tolerances.
/. 0alculate the 1stimated 2trip )idth.
3. (roduce a %end (rogression or #lower.
4. 5ayout and design the roll tooling around the flower.
6. Incorporate fixtures, guides, side rolls and straightening devices where applicable.
7fter the cross$section has been finali!ed, and before the rolls can be designed, the proper
number of passes and rolling mill must be determined. 7t the same time, other *uestions
need to be answered such as+
,. 2teel type and grade.
/. (re$notching, pre$cut lengths, multiple gages.
3. 0ombination sets.
4. 2econdary processes, which can limit roll design options.
3.0 CALCULATING THE ESTIMATED STRIP WIDTH
(robably the most common problem associated with designing roll tooling is predicting
how a forming bend will react during the rolling process. 8sing the proper 9 factor or
%end 7llowance is the main item the designer must consider when calculating a strip
width. :arious factors contribute to the bend allowance such as, material type and yield
strength, profile characteristics such as large radii or ,;<$degree bends and roll design
techni*ues.
)hen calculating strip widths and designing rolls, the maximum thic'ness within the
gage range is generally used. This is done to eliminate interference between the male and
female rolls when the material is passing through. 8nfortunately, many companies
purchase their raw materials to the low side of the thic'ness range to net more footage per
ton, which leads to a lesser *uality cross$section (poor dimensional and bend
characteristics. The use of restricted tolerance material will greatly improve part
consistency but is rarely done due to increased costs for
raw materials.
FIG #1: C-CHANNEL CROSS-SECTION WITH MATERIAL AND MILL SPECS
#irst, consider the material to be formed. 8sing steels with yield strengths of 3<$66 92I
with forming angles of around =<$degrees and a ,t > 6t inside bend radius, a ' factor
between 36$4<? of the material thic'ness is most common. "igher yield materials
between @<$;6 92I (with a low elongation percentage, a factor between 4<$66? may be
necessary. #or bend angles over ,/<$degrees and inside bend radius less than ,t, the '
factor should be around 6<?. 7gain, these examples are only a general rule of thumb for
typical roll formed bends.
Aote that the strip widths should always be considered an estimate, and it is important not
to order large *uantities of raw material prior to proving the tooling. There are instances
where the width will need to be modified during testing.
4.0 FLOWER DEVELOPMENT
7fter the estimated strip width is calculated, the flower can now be developed by using
the arc and straight lengths. This basic 0$channel will be the example given. Bn
typical 0$channels, the return leg (bend C/ is the first forming to be done. I li'e to form
this leg to approximately
D<$;< degrees in three passes depending on the length of the leg. This angle is important
because if formed all the way to its finished angle of =<$degrees, access to the inside
corner of bend C, will be limited in the later passes. %y 'eeping bend C/ open ,< to /<
degrees, one additional pass will have contact with bend C,. The final ,< to /< degrees of
forming would ta'e place after the last pass that contacts bend C,.
#orming a bend that does not have a roll holding the inside corner is called air, blind
or box forming. )hen this occurs, forming the remaining angle from bend C/ helps to
reduce distortion in the radius of bend C,.
FIG #2: EAMPLES OF AIR FORMING AND FLOWER WITH ROLL
CONTACT
If the bend corner of C/ has a pre$punched slot or hole, it would be better to finish the
bend while C, is flat (<$degrees forming, because any forming in the later passes would
increase distortion to and around the notch. "owever, I would still hold the return leg as
shown above after contact with the inside corner is no longer possible. This will prevent
bend C, from lifting while minimi!ing bend C / distortion.
FIG #3: 3D VIEW OF NOTCHED BEND
The chart below describes where the forming ta'es place. The angles shown are how
much forming is being done at each pass.
FIG #4: FLOWER BASED ON CHART WITH CALCULATIONS
(722
%1A-
,
%1A-
/
, < /;
/ < /3
3 < ,=
4 ,/ <
6 ,@ <
@ ,D <
D /< <
; ,3 ,/
= = ,,
,< @ 3
E211 B(TIBA75 (,/ (722 ABT1.
The following layout describes how to determine the theoretical radii for the bends. The
radii that are calculated are considered a reducing or constant length type. )hich
means that in every forming pass the entire arc length (.4/;6 is being used within the
radius. This is why the earlier passes have larger radii when not completely formed to the
finished angle of =< degrees. There are other forming methods used to for bends such asF
constant radius, arc$in G arc$out. These methods have certain advantages and
disadvantages, but for the most part the constant length method is most widely used. In
many cases I li'e to calculate all the passes using this method to develop the progression
and then sharpen the radii in the early passes slightly to help the section trac' properly.
Bver$forming a bend beyond the finished angle is necessary to account for material
spring$bac'. In this example section where the material is .<@< 0H2 with a yield
strength of 36 92I, a / or 3 degree over$form is re*uired to overcome the spring$bac'
effect. Materials that have high elongation rates (7luminum for example may only need
I or , degree while high strength and high yield materials may re*uire 6 to ,6 degrees of
over$form. ABT1+ The amount of over$form can vary based on numerous cross$sectional
characteristics such as section depth, si!e of the
inside radius, thinner material running through tooling designed for thic'er and the
amount of air forming involved. Try to avoid over$forming more than one bend at the
same pass because the operator may need to control one more than the other using roll
pressure. In the chart above, bend C/ is over$formed at pass C= then allowed to spring
bac' to =<$degrees at pass C,<. %end C, is over$formed in pass C,<.
0are should be ta'en to the limit the amount of lateral and vertical movement the
material is sub&ected to from pass to pass, especially lateral movement. Aote how this
flower progression is forming more at first and less towards the end. The material flows
more laterally once the forming angle approach =<$degrees. This increases load against
the forming rolls and creates many problems li'e mar'ing or scuffing, end$flare, twist
with asymmetrical profiles and camber or bow.
In pass C,<, we are over$bending C,. There is no finish pass. This allows the mill
operator more control of the finished forming angle of bend , and at the same time,
minimi!es end$flare as opposed to a more traditional overform.finish pass.
FIG #!: OVERFORM " FINISH PASS EAMPLE
)hen developing the flower the designer must consider the correct number of passes.
This ten$pass example should be o'ay if running non$notched, post$cut mild steel. If the
section is either notched, pre$cut or high strength material, more passes will be necessary
to achieve desired results. 7dditional passes allow the material to flow through the mill
with less strain. This is a must, especially for pre$cut blan's. The pre$cut lengths must
self$feed through every pass without damaging the lead edge of the strip. 7 good rule of
thumb is to try to design all roll
passes to self$feed even when running coil stoc'. The mill operator should not have to
feed a new coil and pry the section into the next pass.
#NOTE: I$ %&'-$()*% +, ) -.&-%*& )&' ) /$+&+,0 1),,2 +, '%,+*%', -.&,+'%* )''+&3 45.
6.*% 1),,%, 4. 40+, 4%& 1),, %7)61(%. P),, #11 5.8(' 8&$.(' B%&' #1 4.
)11*.7+6)4%(9 :; '%3*%%, )&' 1),, #12 5.8(' *%-$.*6 B%&' #1 4. 40% $+&+,0%' )&3(%
.$ <0 '%3*%%,. T0% 8,% .$ 40+, 8&$.('+&3 " *%-$.*6+&3 6%40.' 5.8(' +61*.=% )&3(%
)&' $()*% -.&4*.(.
!.0 ROLL LA>OUT
7fter the flower has been completed, the designer needs to choose drive diameters and
chec' for maximum flange roll si!es and possible interference with the rolling mill.
2tep$up or increasing the pitch diameters of the rolls from pass to pass is important to
consider during the
design phase. In many situations overfeeding or buc'ling between passes
(particularly in the early stages will occur. This problem is caused when the material
(especially lighter gages from a previous pass is driving faster than the next. The
amounts of forming tor*ue and surface contact on the rolls are the 'ey factors as to
why this problem exists. "owever, after the profile has ample column strength, step$up
can be reduced or eliminated. )ith pre$notched applications, caution should be ta'en not
to overly increase drive diameters because this may lead to increased part lengths and . or
distorted notches.
Jeneral guidelines for 2tep$up+
(re$notched materials (.<,6 to .<3< gage+ 8se approximately .<,< diameter step$up
per pass.
Thin gage . non$pre$notched (.<,6 to .<3< gage+ .<6< diameter step$up passes ,$3, .<3<
diameter passes 4$up.
Bur .<@< 0$0hannel example (non$notched+ .<3< diameter step$up all passes.
Bther solutions to overfeeding can be idling 'ey spindles on the mill or idling 'ey
forming rolls, clearance angles on rolls that appear to be driving too hard or reducing roll
diameters in a previous pass.
FIG #;: ROLL LA>OUT WITH DRIVE AND FLANGE DIAMETERS
)ith the drive diameters chosen the vertical centers are D.<@< and falls between the 4
to ; range. The maximum roll diameter shown is based on the re*uired flange needed
for smooth material transition from the previous pass. It is important to chec' that this
maximum diameter does not interfere with the mill base or any other maximum diameter
from an ad&acent pass. The location of the profile on the roll space, roll widths and spacer
lengths are also determined in this layout.
;.0 ROLL DESIGN
These days almost all companies use some sort of computer aided design software in
their engineering departments. )ith this in mind, specific calculations will not be
coveredF rather a visual description is shown.
FIG #?: PASS LA>OUTS WITH DESCRIPTIONS
T>PES OF /TRAP2 ROLLS:
?.0 ROLL DESIGN TIPS
)hen forming a bend which has a ,t or less inside radius and when box forming, a
coining or bead pass is very effective in setting the corner. %y coining the material a
slight thinning will occur. "owever, the finished bend corner will be crisp.
FIG #:: COINING PASS
7nother tip to reduce material scuffing is to idle flange rolls so they are not driven. The
speed at which these idled rolls spin is dictated by the section (at or near the highest point
of the leg rather than the millsK drive. Jenerally this method is necessary when the
formed legs of the profile are greater than D<$degrees.
FIG #<: IDLED FLANGE CROSS-SECTION
:.0 TOOLING ACCESSORIES
Most sections re*uire a straightening device after forming which removes unwanted
twist, camber and bow. These straighteners are normally a bloc' type (made from
7luminum bron!e or nylon but can also be done with rollers. The 'ey to straightening is
to have the device fairly close to the last pass (between the last two passes if pre$cut
strips. The length of the bloc' should be long enough to achieve approximately ,$,$
,./ of wor'ing area (or land, while incorporating a good lead$in and exit radius or
taper. The clearance around the profile should have about .<,6 per side and more at the
strip edges. 7void trying to fully contain the profile because if the device is ad&usted it
may also affect the geometry of the cross$section.
FIG #10: STRAIGHTENER: BLOC@ A ROLL T>PE AND FITURE
2ide rolls, or rolls which are mounted on a vertical axis and located between passes is an
excellent way to help a profile enter the main roll passes. These are especially good for
light and heavy gage materials ali'e. Thinner gages tend to spring while heavy gages
have high lateral forces against the flanges. In addition to smoothing out the forming
transition between passes, side rolls also reduce scuffing of the vertical legs because they
spin on the same axis that the profile travels.
FIG #11: T>PICAL SIDE STAND A CUSTOM DESIGN BETWEEN PASS SIDE
ROLL STAND
<.0 CONCLUSION
7lthough this 0$channel example may not represent your particular re*uirement, it does
contain all of the same steps that are needed to complete a roll design. There is much
more that could be added in this report detailing other areas of a design. 7gain it is only
meant to give the beginning designer a guide and hopefully it will be used as a reference
to help you. Jood luc'L
B),+- R.((-F.*6 T..(+&3 D%,+3&:
P*.-%,, .=%*=+%5, +&,4*8-4+.&, A '%,+3& 4+1,
W*+44%& B9:
C08-C S866%*0+((
R.((-@*)$4 I&-.
:<01 T9(%* B(='.
M%&4.*, O0 440;0
T.((-$*%%: :::-<!3-<400
F)7: 440-20!-3110
%-6)+(: -,866%*0+((D*.((-C*)$4.-.6