A hybrid springback compensation method for geometry complexity in stamping

Abstract Springback compensation is a crucial approach to maintaining the accuracy of stamping parts with complex features. It has been challenging to determine the position of a characteristic point at the geometrical features during springback compensation. The currently available numerical approaches are not always sufficiently accurate and reliable, particularly when high-strength steels are increasingly used for lightweight structures. An enhanced hybrid method named springback path–displacement adjustment (SP-DA) method has been developed based on the well-known conventional displacement adjustment (DA) method to resolve the issue. A finite element method (FEM) model of stamping owning geometry complexity was established, and ST14F, BH300 and DP500, representing low, medium and high-strength steels, respectively, were selected for the study. Springback analyses were conducted, and the springback paths were acquired in the FEM simulation, based on which the spatial position of a node on the mesh of the compensation model was obtained using the SP-DA method. Its effectiveness was first verified numerically, and then, experiments were conducted to validate that the new SP-DA method could significantly increase the accuracy of springback compensation. Stamping of high-strength steels can benefit most from the proposed SP-DA method.