Assessing 3 and 5 Degrees of Freedom Toolpath Strategy Influence on Single Point Incremental Forming

Abstract

Single Point Incremental Forming (SPIF) is a promising manufacturing technology concerning the production of customized products, low batches or prototyping of ready-to-use parts, given its easy implementation and absence of dedicated tooling. The range of application is wide, covering many materials and virtually unlimited geometries. Indeed, nowadays’ boundaries of the process are more related to the machines limitations than to the process itself. The SPIFA machine [1] developed at the University of Aveiro allies high payload capacity to flexibility driven by a kinematics based on a Stewart Platform. In this work, it will discussed the effects of employing five degrees of freedom toolpaths to produce aluminium and high strength steel parts.