Page 49 - MetalForming June 2012

and job complexity. By performing nesting, users can achieve a price- optimized strip layout, determining progression distance (pitch), strip width, blank location and angle, and the number of progressions. Force- analysis tools enable selection of the proper press equipment, and the soft- ware can estimate the cost of produc- tion. The software automatically retrieves cost-related job details from the CAD environment and calculates a price quote, with the quote printed in a professional format including embedded screenshots of the prelim- inary design.
CimatronE reliably imports and exports all standard CAD files and also can read and write native files of com- mon CAD systems. The software, according to company officials, helps die designers avoid trial and error at later stages of a project, and allows for a smooth transition from strip or transfer design, through tool design, to manufacturing.
CimatronE’s advanced blanking capabilities—based on FEA—are built- in, so users reportedly can create a blank accurately in a single click.
“Cimatron’s product line allows managers to analyze the CAD file and perform some quoting from that,” says Sridharan. “With a successful quote, the designers can take that initial information and proceed with tool design. During design, they can send information for machining, allowing for tool build to start while design continues, thus cutting lead time.”
Know the Solving Capabilities
With the array of technology avail- able in these ever-improving software products, potential users must do their homework.
“Some die-design software pack- ages incorporate a simple forming- simulation code,” explains Pete Ulintz. “From this simple code the user expects to look at the formability of the part geometry and create an accurate
flat blank.”
The problem, says Ulintz, lies in
the fact that these simulation codes examine whether the part can be formed in a single hit.
“These software codes are referred to as ‘one-step’ codes,” he says, “and I run into people who say they didn’t get good simulation results, so they assume that the part cannot be formed. Not true. In reality, the simu- lation results tell the user that the part cannot be produced in a single hit. More complex codes can determine if the features can be produced via mul- tiple hits. Users must be aware of the code limitations and simulation capa- bilities.”
One-step codes definitely have their place, but users must know what type of software they are getting.
“As design-software companies simplify the user interface, tradeoffs can occur,” says Ulintz. “One advan- tage is that no longer do FEA analysts have to run the simulation—a die
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