How to create a custom solidworks sheet metal bend table. In sheet metal, the kfactor is the ratio of the neutral axis to the material thickness. It reflects all real but unknown distortions in the bend region. Ive created an excel spreadsheet to figure out k factors and bend allowances. Registered users 79,892 forums 1 topics 45,333 replies 215 topic tags 4,389. A few among the most common applications of sheet metal parts are as automobile and aircraft panels, housings, cabinets. It is visibly clear that it is not possible to bend the part on the right.
Dear all, i required answers for the following questions. Right now it works with inches as the unit of measure. Registered users 79,853 forums 1 topics 45,333 replies 214 topic tags 4,390. Instructor gauge tables allow you to definethe available thicknesses of materials that you havein stock or maybe that you can get,as well as some of the values for the bend deductionor bend allowance that you might be usingout in the shop. A sheet formed part is usually obtained through a number of operation phases. This method leaves the hard work for the fabrication shop. Calculate k factor, bend allowance and y factor for sheet. Notice that the righthand portion of the dialog box updates to provide an. To generate this flat pattern, you must consider the type and thickness of the material, grain direction, and machine setup for bending in order to develop standard bend allowance or k factor values that are used in calculating the flat pattern. The only truly effective way of working out the correct bend allowance is to reverse engineer it by taking a. Bending is one of the most common sheet metal fabrication operations. Using the bend table unfolding method, sheet metal parts unfold using empirical values that are measured or derived and applied to specific bend angles within the table.
The kfactor in sheet metal working is the ratio of the neutral axis to the material thickness. Pdf the study of design constants in sheet metal forming. We discuss those along with springback, bend allowances k factor and design tips. Kfactor is a constant, used to calculate the sheetmetal flat length.
Mathematically k factor is a ratio of position of neutral axis and sheet thickness. Calculate k factor, bend allowance and y factor for sheet metal bending. When using an arc or spline to define a rolled wall, the sheet metal table and the flat pattern is a bit different. Value of the k factor depends on material, bend radius, sheet thickness and machines used. Dec, 2017 looking for a generalized gauge and sheet metal bend table for aluminum. However, you can modify kfactor, bend allowance, and bend deduction per feature or per bend. Nov 08, 2012 dear all, i required answers for the following questions. Bending transverse bending the next issue of technical tidbits will include an informative comparisons between vblock testing and bending reality bending without breaking a discussion of testing the bend formability of copper alloy strip. Where t is the distance from inside face to the neutral sheet and t is the sheet thickness figure 1. Jun 11, 2015 in real live, we have static correction factors for situations, where the inner bending radius and the sheet metal type and thickness is defined. After bending the sheet we need to do some measurements as shown in figure 2. Kfactor calculator the program is used to calculate the kfactor in sheetmetal bending. Without a hole p a kn area bh m max allowable 175 0. In reality, how a real metal part will stretch as it bends depends on a number of physical factors tooling, material homogeneity etc.
Our solidworks experts can setup your environment so that your team uses a comprehensive set of. The art and science of bending sheet metal hackaday. The main reason that i compared it ti the appearance ui is that it clearly has a standard library, you custom items, and also shows what is unique to the document. Mathematically kfactor is a ratio of position of neutral axis and sheet thickness. New format of k factor extracting from excel files in. This is a cyclic deformation most often associated with. Since the inside compression can not exceed the outside tension, the kfactor can never exceed. Bend allowance the distance around the bend measured along the neutral axis. Many cad programs, however, also work out bend allowances automatically by using kfactor calculations. We are not a fab shop, but i make all my own sheet metal parts and send out the drawings for fabrication. Jul 27, 2018 basic sheet metal parts in fusion 360s sheet metal workspace.
Analyzing the kfactor in sheet metal bending the fabricator. According to every sheet thickness, theres a suitable inner radius and flange length when bending sheet metal. Often bend allowances are calculated for a sheet metal part and used to. Grain direction can play a role, but it is usually a much smaller contribution. Bend allowances are calculated using a kfactor as follows. Learn sheet metal design terminology including bend deduction.
When metal is bent the top section is going to undergo compression and the bottom section will be stretched. Solidworks sheet metal tools are relatively straight forward, but may not be clearly understood. I am trying to understand how iv uses the k factor in sheet metal bending. Sheet metal forming sheet metal working includes cutting and forming operations performed on relatively thin sheet of metal. Kfactors, yfactors, and press brake bending precision. The sheet or plate which used for sheet metal working are produced by rolling. If i create a bent angle iron shape, the bend line does not show up where id expect it to, and there seems to be no setting i can change to move the bend line. However, you can modify k factor, bend allowance, and bend deduction per feature or per bend.
And you can see over here,weve got this bend allowance checkmark already turned on. As long as you put the right bend deduction,bend allowance, or kfactor in to solidworks. The kfactor depends on many factors including the material, the type of bending operation coining, bottoming, airbending, etc. Sheet metal overview designing sheet metal parts without using software applications, sheet metal design might consist only of rough sketches and some dimensions on paper. The k factor is the most important and elusive variable of bending, because it varies both as a function of the material and according to parameters such as angle and tooling. Figure 2 illustrates the sheet that is bent with the bend angle of 90 degrees. This video shows the new format of k factor extracting from excel files in sheet metal. Kfactor calculator easy and effective solidworks forums. Many prototypes must be built before the final shape and sizes are determined. This is done through the application of force on a workpiece. The program is very simple and user friendly and requires no previous knowledge. It makes manufacturing very difficult and manual labour may be needed.
Sheet metal k factor user modification i also thought about referencing the parameters ui, which would work well also. Bending calculations using kfactor, bend deduction, and. The kfactor approximations given below are more likely to be accurate for air bending. Sheet metal table and flat view open and close the ripbend tables and the visualization of the sheet metal model flat pattern. You can create or modify a bend or gauge tableinside of microsoft excel and then. The bend deduction is the amount the sheet metal will stretch when bent as measured from. Sheet metal fabrication is the process of forming parts from a metal sheet by punching, cutting, stamping, and bending. A printable pdf version of this information is available here. The fineart of sheet metal bending engineeringclicks. Getting an online bending quote is very easy, you just have to upload your step files. Values for angles not defined within the table are calculated using a backup kfactor select bend table as the unfold method. Therefore, it is not part of the standard freecad install. Use unfold task panel to assign the material sheet.
Sheet metal bending design tips, bend allowance, k. The value of the kfactor should range between 0 0,5. In sheetmetal fabrication, parts are formed from metal sheets by punching, cutting, stamping, and bending. While sheet metal bend the part shows one side red color and another side green color what is the meaning of red color and green color.
So if the thickness of the sheet was a distance of t 1 mm and the location of the neutral axis was a distance of t 0. Kfactor is a ratio that represents the location of the neutral sheet with respect to the thickness of the sheet metal part. In sheet metal design, the kfactor is used to calculate how much sheet metal one needs to leave for the bend in order to achieve particular final dimensions. When a flat sheet is bent there is no reduction in its width or height, the only change takes place in its length. So, basically, over here under the sheet metal folder,at the very top, right click,and click on edit feature. Sheet metal bending design tips, bend allowance, k factor, etc. Bending calculations using kfactor, bend deduction, and bend. This is a basic guide to the main processes involved in sheet metal bending.
Kfactor or bend deduction is highly dependent on the type of bending air or coining, width of vblocks, and the material and its hardness. Looking for a generalized gauge and sheet metal bend table for aluminum. The kfactor is used to calculate flat patterns because it is related to how much material is stretched during bending. The bend allowancebend deduction of the sheet metal specified in kfactor by configuring and utilizing a sheet metal gauge table, we can speed up the process of selecting the correct wall thickness based on gauge value and selecting. How to set up sheet metal gauge tables engineers rule. The bend allowancebend deduction of the sheet metal specified in k factor by configuring and utilizing a sheet metal gauge table, we can speed up the process of selecting the correct wall thickness based on gauge value and selecting. Finish sheet metal model closes deactivates the sheet metal model. Apr 25, 2018 kfactor a constant determined by dividing the thickness of the sheet by the location of the neutral axis, which is the part of sheet metal that does not change length. Kfactor a constant determined by dividing the thickness of the sheet by the location of the neutral axis, which is the part of sheet metal that does not change length. Bendomatic is a revolutionary professional software package to determine initial unfolded length it is an integral and indispensable part of sheet metal bending operations, that will not only automate and speed up the numerous repetitive calculations and drafting but also help you in achieving the same, with the maximum degree of accuracy and efficiency, thereby saving labor.
Tanel another option that is not so close to the theory of this pdf but you will help a lot the guys on the bending machine is the following. Use this table to convert rips to bends and vice versa. The sheet metal model built with the sheet metal addon rear. Therefore if you have to make a bent component, plus bend can tell you what blank size you should start from, so that you get the desired dimensions of the finished component. The k factor is defined as the ratio between the material thickness t and the neutral fibre axis t, i. It is worth noting that in older versions of inventor, the format supported by inventor assumes that the. I personally use the kfactor version, but many may prefer bend allowance or go with a bend table. Please refer to the files for determining kfactor for your process. Cad design tips fractory sheet metal fabrication in uk. Sheet metal overview kfactor represents the theoretical position of the neutral axis. It ultimately allows you to estimate the amount of stretch without knowing what type of material you are bending. You just have to enter a value for the thickness of materials and bending radius, in inches or mm, and get the value of the.
However, it also applies to everyone using sheet metal in inventor. The kfactor is empirically determined for a given material, material thickness, bend radius, and bending method. In sheet metal, there is a powerful bend constant known as the kfactor. Oct, 2011 tanel another option that is not so close to the theory of this pdf but you will help a lot the guys on the bending machine is the following. Most sheet metal shops have standards in place that the designer can use while generating the. You can use the sheet metal gauge table to assign values for the whole part. Since gauge tables were introduced, all the parameters can be controlled base on the drop down selection which makes life much easier. When working in solidworks to create sheet metal designs, we will often need to know three important values. The solidworks application also comes with a kfactor bend table in microsoft excel format.
Bending is a manufacturing process that produces a vshape, ushape, or channel shape. Dec 27, 2016 when working in solidworks to create sheet metal designs, we will often need to know three important values. Kfactor is a ratio that represents the location of the neutral axis with respect to the thickness of the sheet metal part and depends on material, thickness and bend radius. A sheet formed part is usually obtained through a number of operation phases final surface intermediate. Most cad systems that have sheet metal design tools will allow you to input a kfactor that the software uses to calculate the unfolding to give an accurate blank, or flat pattern. Sheet metal parts are some of the most important semifinished products. Most sheet metal shops will produce their own bend tables by physically bending test pieces to specified angles and taking accurate.
So for a very large radius bend where the neutral axis lies right in the center of the material, the kfactor would be exactly 0. Mar 15, 2019 please refer to the files for determining kfactor for your process. When you select kfactor as the bend allowance, you can specify a kfactor bend table. Calculating bend allowance, bend deduction, and kfactor. Therefore it is important to have the value correct in cad software. Value of the kfactor depends on material, bend radius, sheet thickness and machines used. The problem with a solidworks sheet metal bend table is that it can only control the bend allowance, bend deduction or kfactor but the thickness and radius is still free to be changed manually. From there we can calculate the k factor and the bend deduction. Relationship between bend deduction, bend allowance, and k factor. The yfactor is used, as far as i know, solely by ptcs proengineer, now known as creo elementspro. In practical terms, its just a generic bend allowance to use when you dont know the process or machine that is going to be used to bend the sheet. In real live, we have static correction factors for situations, where the inner bending radius and the sheet metal type and thickness is defined.