Solid vs Shell: Surface

Successful prediction of surface defects on a cable cover part

The production of complex sheet metal forming parts is more and more often faced with an additional requirement:

Maintaining a high surface quality, especially for visible parts!

Here it is mandatory to use a solid model for achieving a realistic result. You can see the remarkable difference between shell and solid model in the last picture of the video.

This means that a part that can be formed without any cracks may still be inoperative due to surface defects.

The video shows the forming of a cable cover part with problems on the surface simulated by Stampack. It is a progressive die part and can be manufactured without failing. In the first stage, you can see a strong surface defect, where a small tool radius has caused a dent in the part (2nd last picture).

To reduce the blank markings, the following steps can be performed here:

  • Avoid small radiuses hitting the part
  • Reduce wrinkle formation during the process
  • Ensure an uniform tool contact
  • Simulate again to validate the improvements