Abstract
Die-less forming is a cold forming process which is to bend thick flat plates into compound curved plates using two asymmetric rollers. This forming method has several advantages compared with line heating which is widely used to fabricate compound curved pieces in shipyards. The die-less forming, however, has scarcely been studied. Even the deformation mechanism in this forming process has not been understood clearly. So, in this paper, the deformation characteristics of die-less forming is investigated analytically and numerically. for the analytic investigation, slab method based on equilibrium equation is applied. And the mechanism of curvature generation is derived for the asymmetry in roller applied. And three dimensional numerical analyses are performed with realistic modeling of interactions between the rollers and work-piece using finite element program, ABAQUS. It is shown that curvature generation is mainly due to the difference of normal positive strain distribution between the top and bottom surface of the work-piece. And a convex-type curved plate is formed if the center region of the work-piece is rolled with asymmetric rollers of which the lower is larger than the upper in diameter.
