FINITE-ELEMENT ANALYSIS OF FORMABILITY OF A FEW KINDS OF SPECIAL STEEL SHEETS

Deep drawing processes of various special steel sheets are simulated b y the rigid-plastic finite element method. To predict the forming limi t a criterion for ductile fracture is applied. From the histories of s tress and strain in each element calculated by the finite element simu lation, the fracture initiation site and the critical stroke are predi cted by means of the ductile fracture criterion. The predictions so ob tained are compared with experimental observations. The results show t hat the finite element analysis combined with the ductile fracture cri terion is useful to predict the forming limit in a wide range of sheet steels.