A novel plate forging process for manufacturing outer flanged cup parts with non-uniform thickness

Plate forging process makes it possible to produce complex parts with non-uniform thickness while reducing manufacturing costs and extending mold life, without compromising mechanical properties or functional performance of components. Aiming at address the issues of folding and buckling commonly encountered in traditional manufacturing methods, this work proposed a novel plate forging process for manufacturing outer flanged cup parts with non-uniform thickness. Firstly, the deformation characteristics of the new plate forging process in the production of flange cup parts were analyzed. Secondly, the influence of different punch boss heights, cup wall thicknesses and initial plate thicknesses on the forming quality of flanged cup parts was explored through finite element simulations and plate forging experiments. As a result, a cup part with an outer flange was successfully manufactured, thereby verifying the feasibility of the new process. Finally, to address the local thinning and fracture defects encountered during the stretching of thick plates to form cup bottoms, an enhanced method using a multi-step punch was proposed. The improvement mechanism was analyzed, and both experimental and simulation results demonstrated its significant effectiveness in improving local thinning defects.