Green alternative processing technology for a spring guide pin of stamping die set

Abstract

In this research, a multi-stage cold forging process for a spring guide pin of stamping die set is designed through alternative process for sustainable production. Highly energy and material consuming process needs to be converted to an energy saving process. Up to now, a spring guide pin for stamping die set is usually manufactured by machining process in order to achieve dimensional accuracy. However, machining process has some disadvantages such as excessive material loss, low productivity, and poor mechanical properties. In order to overcome these problems, a multi-stage cold forging process is applied to manufacturing spring guide pin for achieving less material loss and higher productivity. Multi-stage forging process requires careful design steps to prevent the defects of the final product. So, the design must consider the material flow during the whole process and the loading limit of the press in order to avoid product defects such as folding and underfilling. To develop multi-stage forging process for spring guide pin the forming load and material flow at each step is analyzed using a commercial finite element code, DEFORM. The guide pin is then manufactured by the developed multistage forging process, and is compared to the simulation results. Also the efficiency of the developed forging process is compared to the machining process. The developed process is a green manufacturing process minimizing material loss, which achieves cost reduction through improved material usage and productivity compared to the more widely used machining process.