The ability of a laser beam to heat metal sheets and establish local thermal gradiants allows the thermo-mechanical forming of complex shapes. Thermal gradients can be developed locally through the thickness direction and laterally in constricted areas. The modeling of the simplest laser forming, a fold produced by the motion of a laser beam spot along a linear path bisecting a square sheet, has been accomplished with finite element thermal and mechanical modeling. The code ABAQUS was used at M.I.T. and the combined codes TOPAZ3D/NIKE3D were used at Boeing. Melting was avoided in the tests on a number of metals and the modeling was done for conditions below melting, but the properties of the metals at elevated temperatures were not completely known. Modeling has predicted the observed spatial distribution of transient motions for the forming process that occurs during and after the laser processing. The final folding angles have been predicted and compared with measured results.
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ICALEO '97: Proceedings of the Laser Materials Processing Conference
November 17–20, 1997
San Diego, California, USA
ISBN:
0-912035-56-0
PROCEEDINGS PAPER
Finite element modeling of laser forming
Yung-Chin Hsiao;
Yung-Chin Hsiao
1
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, Cambridge, Masschusetts 02139, U.S.A.
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Hideki Shimizu;
Hideki Shimizu
1
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, Cambridge, Masschusetts 02139, U.S.A.
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Lee Firth;
Lee Firth
2
The Boeing Company
, Seattle, Washington 98124, U.S.A.
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Warren Maher;
Warren Maher
2
The Boeing Company
, Seattle, Washington 98124, U.S.A.
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Koichi Masubuchi
Koichi Masubuchi
1
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, Cambridge, Masschusetts 02139, U.S.A.
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Published Online:
November 01 1997
Citation
Yung-Chin Hsiao, Hideki Shimizu, Lee Firth, Warren Maher, Koichi Masubuchi; November 17–20, 1997. "Finite element modeling of laser forming." Proceedings of the ICALEO '97: Proceedings of the Laser Materials Processing Conference. ICALEO '97: Proceedings of the Laser Materials Processing Conference. San Diego, California, USA. (pp. pp. A31-A40). ASME. https://doi.org/10.2351/1.5059621
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