Solid-mechanics finite element simulations of the draping of fabrics: a sensitivity analysis

This paper covers numerical investigations of the draping of woven fabrics into a "hat" shape, combining a hemispherical cup with a wide flat rim. A m echanical approach is adopted using finite element analysis (FEA) methodolo gy. In this, the fabric is considered as a solid sheet with mechanical prop el ties and friction properties. In this study, a linear elastic anisotropi c material model describes the deformation of fabrics. An explicit dynamic finite element analysis is applied and systematic parametric numerical stud ies are presented, which incorporate investigations of the effects of numer ical parameters, material properties and processing conditions on the drapi ng of fabrics. More specifically, the effects of the following variables an d parameters are included: number of elements, number of time increments in the dynamic FEA analysis, punch speed, shear and tensile moduli of fabric, coefficient of friction for all interfaces and level of load on the fabric holder. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.