Finite Element Simulation of Springback in Sheet
Metal Bending
Yanwei Zhang
College of the Mechanical and Electric Engineering
HeBei Engineering University
Handan, 056038, China
Email: zhangyanwei@hebeu.edu.cn
Abstract- The paper studies sheet metal forming process using
finite element analysis for large elastic-plastic deformation,
offering both theoretical and methodological contributions to the
subject. Sheet bending process is simulated using finite element
analysis software ANSYS. The springback phenomenon is
examined in great details. Taking A3 sheet as a specimen, the
analysis presents springback values in the bending process, as
well as a curve of springback vs. relative bending radius R/t,
curve of springback vs. bending clearance between punch and
cavity, curve of springback vs. material response (stress-strain
curve) during plastic deformation. The simulation results
provide valuable information for die modification.
Key words-Sheet metal forming numerical simulation
springback finite element analysis large elastic-plastic
deformation
I. INTRODUCTION
Sheet metals usually undergo elastic deformation during
plastic bending; as a result, springback often occurs after the
bending process. Springback is a main defect of bending
formation; however, the amount of springback is hard to
determine[1,2]. In addition, from mechanics viewpoint, the
seemingly simple bending process is in fact a complex plastic
formation process including non-linear, geometric non-linear
and contact non-linear processes in the material. Therefore, it
is difficult to address the springback problem by theoretical
method[3]. Engineers typically determine springback values
by empirical data, then test and modify the die accordingly.
This empirical method is hardly able to take into consideration
the various factors affecting sheet formation, thus lacking
978-1-4244-4994-1/09/$25.00 2009 IEEE
Guohua Cui
College of the Mechanical and Electric Engineering
HeBei Engineering University
Handan, 056038, China
Email: ghcui2007@yahoo.com.cn
quantitative analysis necessary for efficient die design. This
leads to blindness in design works, causing waste in
manpower, material and time. Finite element (FE) analysis is
seen as an effective way in addressing this problem. In
particular, FE analysis for large elastic-plastic deformation has
been widely used in die design and processing design.
Numerical simulation technology is also used in design. Sheet
formation process can be simulated with input such as material
parameters, process and geometrical parameters. Such analyses
and data offer comprehensive and valuable evaluation
information for die design and modifications[4].
The paper studies sheet metal forming process using finite
element analysis for large elastic-plastic deformation, offering
both theoretical and methodological contributions to the
subject. Sheet bending process is simulated using finite
element analysis software ANSYS. The springback
phenomenon is examined in great details. The simulation
results provide valuable information for die modification.
II. THEORETICAL BASIS OF LARGE ELASTIC-PLASTIC
DEFORMATION FINITE ELEMENT METHOD
The theoretical basis for numerical simulation of sheet
bending process consists mainly of FE analysis for large
elastic-plastic deformation and FE penalty function
algorithms for contact problems. Among these, only the
former will be focused in this paper. During metal sheet
formation, when stress reaches the yield point of the sheet,
some zones may enter into a plastic deformation process. This
variation in material property poses non-linear problems.
After plastic deformation, the stress-strain curve is no longer
linear, that is, the elastic-plastic matrix [D] is not a constant
matrix any more: it relates not only to material property but
also to the stress level at that point[5,6]. Superscript ep
denotes the non-liner stress-strain state after the sheet enters
into plastic deformation, thus:
{ } = [ D ] { }
For general consideration, the elastic-plastic matrix is
divided into elastic matrix [D]e and plastic matrix: [D]
[ D] ep
= [ D] [ D]
Unit stiffness matrix represents the equilibrium between
the internal stress and node of a unit. When [D]
determined from unit stress, according to the Principle of
Virtual Work in elastic FE analysis, we have unite stiffness
matrix [Ke]ep
[K ] [ B ] ( [ D ] [ D ] ) [ B ] dv = [ K ] [ K ]
ep T e
e
= e
Ve
where [K e ] =
[B ] [D ] [B ]d v .
p T
Ve
stiffness matrix of a unit, representing the decrement of load
capacity when the unit transforms from elasticity state into
plasticity state. [Ke]p represents the non-linear part of the
material, which is the key to solving the non-linear problem.
Since the elastic-plastic stiffness matrix relates to the
stress level of the unit, or the node displacement, the finial
stiffness matrix [K]ep , assembled from elastic stiffness
matrices [Ke] of units(those havent entered into plastic state
yet) or elastic-plastic stiffness matrices [Ke]ep( those already
entered into plastic state), is inevitably linked with node
displacement. Thus the equilibrium equation is a non-linear
one.
Equation for assembling the finial stiffness matrix is:
([ K ] [ K ] )
n m
[K ] e
ep
= e
e
e
i =1
In consideration of large deformation, the basic
equation of non-linear FE can be expressed as:
m
[ K ] ) { } = {F } + {F } + {F } + {F } 5
([ K e ]
e p
e j
j =1
where [K]ep- elastic-plastic stiffness matrix { }- node
displacement vector{Fp}- node force vector{Fpr}- unit
stress vector {Fb}- force vector {Fgd}- additional force
vector due to large deformation.
III. NUMERICAL FE MODEL OF SHEET BENDING PROCESS
In this study, the formation is analyzed using large
ep
1 elastic-plastic FE method, with two tasks at hand: one is to
simulate the bending process; the other is to conduct
springback analysis. For conveniences sake, a numerical
example is provided. In this example, the specimen is a
e p
2 left-right symmetric sheet of length 80, inner profile width 40,
height 50, thickness 3, inner bending radius R, and a range of
ep
is 3~6. The A3 steel specimen is used for comparison analysis of
springback process. The default value of bending clearance
between punch and cavity equals to the sheet thickness. The
inlet angle of the cavity is 3, bending displacement is 30
initial springback angle is 0.
p e p
e
3
A. Selecting element type and modeling
p
It is called plastic The blank is simulated using SOLID45 element
(SOLID45 involves elastic-plastic property, large deformation
and large stress). The punch, kicking plate and cavity are
simulated using TARGET170 element. The punch, cavity,
kicking plate and blank are connected with three contact
surface pairs. The sheet surface serves as female surface while
the die surface serves as the male surface. Contact surfaces
are simulated by CONTACT173 element.
B. Material model
The material is assumed to meet the Mises yield
criterion, and an isotropic hardening model is adopted.
Stress-strain curve of A3 steel is exponentially expressed as
= k n , where is equivalent stress. The hardening
exponent n=0.15, elastic modulus of the material E=1.9e5 N/
2, yield stress is 239.4 Mpa.
C. Constrains and load
p
= [ Ke ]
e
[ K ] 4 e
p
j
i j =1 The cavity is fixed when the die works, therefore the
object surface of the cavity is constrained by two directions:
UX and UY. The punch only allows for perpendicular
displacement, thus each node of the punch is constrained by
UX direction, and a -30 mm displacement loading is imposed
p pr b gd
along Y direction. The blank is left-right symmetric, the
symmetric line is constrained by UX. The movement of blank
during formation is dictated by contract state. The contact
between kicking plate and blank is to be defined during the
analysis. The blank-holder force is applied on the kicking
plate before the analysis. Assume that the force is great
enough that its impact on springback can be ignored during
formation analysis.
D. Modeling
Parameterized FE model is built using ANSYS-APDL
language. 3D geometric model and FE model are built based
on 2D simulation of die structure, see Fig. 1.
Figure.1 FE model
The punch, cavity, kicking plate and blank are all
symmetric, thus a 1/4 model of the structure is sufficient.
IV. RESULT ANALYSIS OF NUMERICAL FE MODEL
Fig.2,3 shows the shape of the sheet after bending and
after springback. The figures show that:
1 Changes at bend corner meshes are observed,
indicating that the deformation only occurs at the bend
coroner during the entire process. Referring to Fig. 3, the
springback angle of A3 steel is 0.95. Springback phenomenon
directly affects the quality of the sheet. Typcially the
springback angle should not exceed the angle tolerance of the
sheet. The tolerance range is shown in Table1.
From the table 1 we can see that the springback
angle of A3 steel is within acceptable range.
2The springback value is related to relative bending
radius R/t. Fig. 4 shows a plot of punch radius vs. springback
angle (material: A3 steel, thickness t=3, bending
clearance=thickness t). As shown in the figure, the springback
angle increases as the radius increase. When R/t1.4, the
springback angle is small and varies slightly; when R/t1.4,
the springback angle increases significantly and varies
dramatically.

TABLE1 ANGLE TOLERANCE OF THE BENT PIECE

Short-side size 1~6 6~10 10~25 25~63 63~160

Economic f1e30~3e f1e30~3e f50~2e f50~2e f25~1e
Precision f1e f1 e f30 f30 f20

Figure.2 A3 steel after bending Figure.3 A3 steel after springback

3The springback value is also linked with bending
clearance. Fig. 5 shows a plot of bending clearance vs.
springback angle (material: A3 steel, thickness t=3inner
bending radius R=3). The figure shows that, the springback
angle increases as the bending clearance increases. However
when the clearance exceeds 3.1 mm, its further increase only
produces slight changes in the springback angle. When the
clearance reaches 3.6 mm, or when the formation is
completed, U-shape part deviates greatly from right angle, as
shown in Fig. 3.

Protruding model fillet radius mm
Figure.4 Protruding model fillet radius vs. springback angle
Bending clearance
Figure.5 Bending clearance-springback angle curve
4Theres a strong stress-strain relation in springback
angle vs. material response(during the plastic deformation
stage). Fig. 6 shows A3 steels stress-strain curve with
reference to the Bilinear Equivalent Hardening Principle.
Figure. 6 A3 steel stress-strain curve
Formation analysis is conducted using ANSYS software,
and springback values are obtained. Designers may use the
data to evaluate the geometry design and processing, adjust
and modify the die, hence produce sound design proposal.
V. CONCLUSION
The paper studies sheet metal forming process using
finite element analysis for large elastic-plastic deformation,
offering both theoretical and methodological contributions to
the subject. Sheet bending process is simulated using finite
element analysis software ANSYS. The springback
phenomenon is examined in great details. Simulation results
show that, the bending process occurs only at the bend corner
of the sheet; the springback angle of A3 steel is within
acceptable tolerance range; the springback angle is related to
relative bending radius R/t, and bending clearance between
punch and cavity, among other factors. The stress-strain curve
of springback value vs. material response (A3 steel) during
plastic deformation is established, offering reliable
information for die design and modification.
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