IMPROVED SIMULATION OF THIN-SHEET METALFORMING USING LS-DYNA3D ON PARALLEL COMPUTERS

Finite-element programs based on explicit time integration have proven to be currently among the most versatile instruments for the simulati on of thin-sheet metalforming. This advantage is particularly evident if finite-element meshes with large numbers of unknowns and contact su rfaces are used. Recent developments of the explicit program LS-DYNA3D have been concerned with contact search and contact treatment, focusi ng on the accuracy and efficiency of these algorithms. The introductio n of general CAD surfaces for the surface description of rigid tools h as improved the modeling capabilities and the results considerably com pared to the faceted representation of contact surfaces, which is the standard in current FE technology. The latter algorithms are paralleli zed for shared memory and MIMD computers, resulting in a large overall increase in speed for the analysis. The present contribution presents an overview over the algorithms developed and of the most recent enha ncements of LS-DYNA3D for sheet metalforming concerning materials and new shell elements. The efficiency of the parallel algorithms is demon strated with some numerical and practical examples.