Reliability analysis of corner filling in the tube hydroforming process

Abstract

In the last decade, tube hydroforming has made a great progress in the automotive and aerospace industry. Robust tube hydroforming requires proper consideration of the influence of process uncertainty on process reliability. In this article, uncertainty variables in the tube hydroforming process are identified according to their characteristics. The design variables and noise factors that influence the corner filling process are subsequently screened through a variance analysis. Assuming that the design variables and noise factors follow the normal distribution, the probability distribution of the corner radius is evaluated by incorporating random process variables into the response surface model and implementing the Monte Carlo simulations. A reliability model for the corner filling process is developed in terms of the permissible corner radius interval. The optimal design point with the maximum probability of process safety is obtained using this model.