Journal of Materials Processing Technology 185 (2007) 139146

Precision forging processes for high-duty automotive components

B.-A. Behrens a , E. Doege a , S. Reinsch b , K. Telkamp b , H. Daehndel a , A. Specker b,
a

IFUM-Institute for Metal Forming and Metal Forming Machine Tools, University of Hannover, Germany b IPH-Institute for Integrated Production Hannover Ltd., Germany

Abstract Precision forging is dened as a ashless near net-shape forging operation which generates high quality parts concerning surface quality and dimensional accuracy. In the past, precision forging processes have been industrially established for axis-symmetric parts, e.g. gearwheels and steering pinions. Further development of the technology to more complex parts, e.g. helical gears, connecting rods and crankshafts is expected to lead to a wider implementation into industry. In particular high-duty automotive components offer a wide application eld for the precision forging technology. Advantages like shortened production cycles which are achieved by eliminating machining operations and the saving of raw material contribute to the ongoing cost-saving trend in the automobile industry. The design process for complex precision forged parts has to be purpose-built to consider the distinctions of this technique. This article describes the adopted methods and development process of a precision forging process exemplarily considering a helical gearwheel and a crankshaft. 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Precision forging; Crankshaft; Gearwheel; Production process

1. Introduction Because of the excellent mechanical properties, namely the undisrupted and stress corresponding bre orientation and the high productivity, bulk forming is a very important production technique. Despite of these advantages, this technology is in permanent competition to other procedures, e.g. casting or sintering. Further on, there is an increasing thread of substitution of bulk formed products with non-ferrous metals, like aluminium or magnesium. Beside the technological competition, producers of drop forged parts have to deal with severe conditions concerning a keener international rivalry and increasing product variations [1,2,11]. Among organisational optimisations it is necessary to strengthen the competitiveness of the bulk forming technology. One way to enhance the engineering potentials of this technology is to establish the precision forging technique as a near-net shape process. By the approximation of the drop forged part geometry to the nal component geometry, precision forging enables the possibility to reduce time- and cost-intensive cutting processes [3,4]. In the context of a Collaborative Research Centre (SFB 489), settled at the University of Hannover, a process chain for the precision forging of a helical gearwheel and a three cylinder crankshaft is developed.

2. Principle of precision forging processes Precision forging is the ashless hot forging of near net-shape products using closed dies. The tools for this process generally consist of a lower and an upper punch, one or more dies and a device to hold the dies closed during the forming process. The dies enable a translatoric motion for opening and closing the dies. The punch enters into the closed die through integrated guiding assemblies. At the start of the process, the work piece is inserted in the open die sinking. In the next step the tool closes without deforming the part. Subsequently the punches move into the die to form the hot material to its nal geometry. After the complete lling of the form the punches return, the dies open and the nished product can be taken out. To achieve the complete lling of the form the work piece is supposed to have the exact volume needed for the nished part. Too much material will cause an overowing of the die and therefore an overload which may destroy the die. 2.1. Precision forging of helical gears Precision forging of helical gear has been widely researched at the IFUMInstitute for Metal Forming and Metal Forming Machine Tools. Figs. 1 and 2 show a variety of tool concepts for the precision forging of helical gears [5,6].

Corresponding author. Tel.: +49 511 27976375; fax: +49 511 27976888. E-mail address: specker@iph-hannover.de (A. Specker).

0924-0136/$ see front matter 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jmatprotec.2006.03.132

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Fig. 4. Helical gear used for the examinations. Fig. 1. Tool concept for the precision forging of helical gears from punched semi-nished parts.

Fig. 2. Tool concept for the precision forging of gears from raw parts.

Helical gears, which are precision forged with tools working according to these concepts are shown in Fig. 3. The demands on helical gears used in automobiles concerning noise development and limited installation space are very high [7]. Especially the noise reduction causes a necessary nishing machining of the helical gears. Therefore an allowance on the helical gears has to be provided through the precision forging process. In order to minimize this nishing machining the allowance has to be small-sized and very accurate. At allowances at about 0.10.2 mm even the shrinking behaviour of the part affected by the forging temperature and the utilized raw part material has to be embraced throughout the process design and development. In Fig. 4 a helical gearwheel is shown which is used as standard model part in the Collaborative Research Centre (SFB 489).

To reach the allowances of 0.10.2 mm mentioned above, even slightest changes in the precision forging process have to be included into the design and concept of the process. One benet when using precision forging is, that the process heat can be used for an integrated heat treatment. For an integrated heat treatment the material of the part has to have enough carbon content. Todays standard materials for gear wheels are case hardening steels which need a carburisation prior to an annealing. To use the forging heat the part has to be made of heat treatable steel. The altered material choice greatly inuences the formation of the deviations of the part and therefore of the predetermined allowances due to a different shrinking behaviour [8,9]. Fig. 5 shows the results of examinations about the inuence of temperature and material choice on the deviations of a part are shown exemplied through the tip diameter of the standard model part helical gearwheel. The examinations carried out at the IFUM showed that the case hardening steel 16MnCr5 (1.7131) and the heat treatable steel 42CrMo4 (1.7225) nearly have the same shrinking behaviour. Helical gears forged from the heat treatable steel 100Cr6 (1.3505) had smaller tip diameters than those of the two other steels examined. The diameters for the root circle showed an identical behaviour. These examinations were carried out with other helical gear wheels with both greater and smaller module as well as gear wheels forged from tube line sections and gear wheels forged from solid line sections. All investigations showed comparable results with gear wheels forged from 16MnCr5 having the greatest tip and root circle diameters and gear wheels forged from 100Cr6 having the smallest tip and root circle diameters.

Fig. 3. Gearwheels precision forged at the IFUM.

Fig. 5. Tip diameter of the standard helical gear addicted to temperature and material.

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Fig. 6. Geometries used for the investigations of the inuence of the surface area.

The shrinking behaviour of a part is not only inuenced by the chosen material of the part but also of the surface to mass ratio. To investigate the inuence of the surface of a part, the model part helical gear has been forged using different variants of the upper and lower punch. By combining these variants of the punches four different geometries of the part with increasing surface are forged using the same tooth system (Fig. 6). Two of the four geometries (geometry 2 in Fig. 6) were identical aside that upper and lower punch geometry were changed. The forgings were carried out under identical conditions using the same mass for all parts. The investigations showed that a greater part surface leads to a higher heat dissipation to the tool. Due to this, the shrinking of the part after the forging is reduced (Fig. 7). The results of these investigations were used for the design and development of the tools for long parts. Especially for long parts the compensation of the shrinking is more complicated because of the uneven mass distribution compared to axis symmetrical parts like gearwheels. 2.2. Precision forging of long parts Former research projects by IPHInstitute for Integrated Production Hannover Ltd., Germany have proved the feasibility of the precision forging technology even for at long pieces. The prototype geometries have been symmetrical and asymmetrical connecting rods (Fig. 8). On the basis of the research projects, a further step to transfer the technology to even more complex components has been made. The crankshaft is representative for non-axially symmetrical long parts. Due to the highly uneven mass distribution, such

Fig. 8. Principle of the moving sequence in a typical precision forging process (connecting rod).

components represent signicant challenges for pre-forming processes. In contrast to the single stage forming of rotational symmetric parts, the layout of a precision forging process for complex geometries is due to a multistage forming process much more complicated. 3. Precision forging of crankshafts 3.1. Function and design of crankshafts The crankshaft is transferring the oscillating movement of the piston into a rotary movement. Each crank arm, which is divided into the crank lever and the counterbalance, is joined by a main bearing respectively a crank bearing with the neighbour crank arm (Fig. 9). The counterbalance compensates the uneven working forces of the driving mechanism. The torques, which are loaded onto the crankshaft via the crank pins, twist the structure of the crankshaft body and necessitate therefore a torsion proof layout. 3.2. Traditionally forged crankshafts The process chain of traditionally forged crankshafts starts with the heating of the cut slug to a forging temperature of

Fig. 7. Tip diameter of the model helical gear addicted to the surface of the part.

Fig. 9. CAD-model of a crankshaft with an elementary cell.

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1250 C. Further on, the heated slug is drop-forged in one to four process steps to its nal geometry. Afterwards the ash, that may embody up to 30% of the input mass, is removed. The nishing covers processes like metal cutting, heat treatment and hard-cutting operations [4,10]. Due to the very uneven mass distribution along the main axis, the design of the forging dies in the forming sequence has to ensure a form lling with a simultaneously minimum rate of cost-intensive ash. Due to the clipping, the materials bre orientation is interrupted at the cutting edges. Typically, the machining allowance of the forging in the zones of the main bearing and the crank pin amounts 13 mm in diameter. Partially this allowance is needed to ensure that structural changes are removed through machining. Furthermore the amount of unbalance of the crankshaft claims a componentspecic machining allowance. 3.3. Characteristics of precision forged crankshafts The application of the precision forging technology to crankshaft forging operations creates the technological potential to reduce costs and to shorten the manufacturing process. In addition to the elimination of the clipping process, omitting the heating and recycling of the ash material leads to a reduction of manufacturing costs of approximately 1.5%. However, transferring the precision forging technique from rotational symmetric forgings (e.g. bevel gears) to more complex components such as crankshafts is a special challenge. In comparison to gearwheels or connecting rods crankshafts have a substantially higher weight, more than any other product ever forged with this technology. The highly asymmetric mass distribution along the main axis, compared to the mass distribution of connecting rods and gears, demands a thorough approximation of the preform geometry. The layout of the preforming process is therefore an important contribution to the success of the whole design process. The application of precision forging processes for crankshafts eliminates one of the main disadvantages of the conventional forging process. Due to the fact that no clipping process takes place after the actual drop forging, the segregation zone of the cutting remains in the neutral axis of the component. Therefore increased physical properties in comparison to conventionally forged crankshafts can be expected. The minimization of the mass of forging results in another further advantage. Since excess material does not have to be pressed into the ash the necessary press power is reduced. Therefore the size of the required forging press can be scaled down in some cases. In case of an investment for a new forging line the costs can be reduced considerably. 3.4. The development process of precision forging of crankshafts Design of a process chain for the precision forging of crankshafts has to consider the engineering features of the component. An integrated approach considering the design of the forging sequence and the tool design by means of CAE-chain

and theoretical verication through the simulation with nite element programs becomes vital. Complete construction and design of the precision forging process are done in a closed CAE-chain. The geometry of the forging sequence as well as the tool layout are designed with the CAD-system Pro/ENGINEER. The forming processes are simulated with the FE-programs MSC.SuperForge and Forge3. An analysis of the thermal and elastic strain of the dies and punches during the forming process is carried out. The tools are meshed and the initial thermal and mechanical boundary conditions are dened for each process. Temperature eld of the forging is transferred from step to step. Furthermore, an analysis of the material ow of the steel during the complete forging sequence is carried out. Analysis also comprises the search for forging mistakes such as folds and under-llings as well as the analysis of the strain rate. 3.5. Elementary cell Since the complexity of precision forging of crankshafts is very high, the development process takes place in several development steps. Each step is concluded with the verication of the developed process by means of practical tests. Because crankshafts consist of a regular structure, the rst series of tests contain the precision forging of an elementary cell. An elementary cell is composed of a main bearing, one crank lever and one crank pin. The modular build-up of the tool allows the production of a complete crankshaft using eight of these modules. The experimental verication was done at the IPH. During the experiments the verication of the precision forging process for the elementary cell was achieved (Fig. 10). The work pieces were made of C45, an industrially used crankshaft steel. The material was cut from a rod with a mass tolerance of 3 g. The forging temperature was TS = 1250 C. To prevent scale formation, the heating process took place in an electrical oven tted with airtight metal hoods. 3.6. One cylinder crankshaft The next development step consists of the design of a forging sequence for a one cylinder crankshaft. This is composed of two half main bearings, a crank pin and two counterbalances.

Fig. 10. Tested forging sequence of the elementary cell.

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Fig. 13. An optimised preforming process leads to a better mass distribution and therefore to better forging results for the precision forging step.

Fig. 11. Precision forging sequence of a one cylinder crankshaft.

Different from the elementary cell the raw part is a square section part. It is formed to the nal geometry in two intermediate steps (Fig. 11). The asymmetric mass distribution of the one cylinder crankshaft is concentrated in axial and radial direction. The radial asymmetry is caused by the internal structure of the crank arms and the counterbalances. For the rst intermediate step a single punch tool concept was used. The principle layout of the tool is, except the unapplied lower punch similar to the tool concept of the nal precision forging process. For the nal precision forging process a tool concept with four punches two in the upper die and two in the lower die was applied (compare Fig. 12). To achieve a short material movement in the precision forging process it is necessary to accomplish that the main part of the

Fig. 12. Tool concept for nal forming stage in the precision forging of a one cylinder crankshaft.

required mass disposition takes place during preforming steps. A well-adapted preform has been created in two preforming steps. For this purpose conventional preforming methods have been modied. Hereby the consideration of preferably equal and short forming paths takes a centre stage during the optimisation process. An iterative advancement of the preform geometry is accomplished by FEM-based simulations. Fig. 13 shows the beginning and the result of the optimisation process for the second preform of the one cylinder crankshaft. In consequence of the optimisation the forming distance was cut down by 15 mm. Besides the saving of press space, the optimisation leads to better forging results due to equally forming paths. The tool concept for the production of the second intermediate good is based on a forging operation with a partial open die. During the forming stage, bearings and pins are moved in their correct position. The diameter of the main bearing and the crank pin was reduced by 1 mm in diameter. Also the thickness of the preformed counterbalance has been reduced. This is necessary to be able to insert the second preform into the nal forging die. In preparation for the precision forging of the complete crankshaft the forging operation was designed with consideration of the angle of forging. Since the second preforming step of the complete crankshaft is a tri-directional forging operation, one along the longitudinal axis and two along the respective lateral axis of the counterbearings, its counterpart of the one cylinder crankshaft is a bi-directional forging operation. Instead of aligning the lateral axis of the one cylinder crankshaft horizontally with the dies, its axis is inclined with an angle of 30 (compare Fig. 14). During the forming process the tool components responsible for the compression movement along the longitudinal axis grip the main bearings and the crank pin. The compression movement proceeds simultaneously with a radial tool movement of the middle grip plate along the lateral axis of the counterbalance to induce the formation of the

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Fig. 14. Tool concept for the second preforming step of a one cylinder crankshaft with middle grip plate for the radial motion of the crank pin along the lateral axis of the counterpart.

Fig. 15. Precision forging sequence of a three cylinder crankshaft.

counterbalances and the displacement of the crank pins out of the centreline of the crankshaft. The bi-directional movement of the tool components is realised with the redirection of the vertical ram movement. Thus the complex forging operation can be realised with a conventional vertical-acting press technology. The chronology of the different tool component kinematics is of immense importance to assure the desired forming. The required kinematics are realised using a very precisely designed wedge gear mechanism. Different speeds and distances can be realised by adjusting the angle of the wedge and its counterpart. A double threaded gearing mechanism is also possible to expand the usable forming paths. 3.7. Three cylinder crankshaft The development of the forging sequence and the tool layout for a three cylinder crankshaft are carried out similar to the precision forging process of the one cylinder crankshaft (Fig. 15). For the redistribution of the mass in the radial direction in the rst step a lateral extrusion process concentrates the material to the counterbalances. The dies for the compression along the longitudinal axis are partially proled for the asymmetric contours of the counterbalances preform. During this rst precision forging process the diameter of the main bearings and the crank pins are formed out, provided with a shrinkage of the nal geometry dimensions. The second process produces the compression of the crank levers and the translation of the crank pins to an eccentric position (Fig. 16, bright for the main bearings and dark for the pins). For the simultaneous compression of the crank levers along the longitudinal axis and the translation of the crank pins, grip plates are clamping the main bearings and the pins. The movement of the clamps in three directions one along the longitudinal axis and two along the respective lateral axis of the counterbearings produce the correct deformation.

The grip plates are divided into two parts, allowing the opening and closing of the tools to load and unload this forming step. For a three cylinder crankshaft it is necessary to clamp the three pins and the four main bearings at the same time. Therefore the second tool has seven clamps, each one with an individual moving character. The chronological order of the single procedures during this forming step is: (1) the loading of the open dies, (2) the closing of the clamps, (3) the movement of the clamps, (4) the opening of the clamps, (5) the unloading of the dies and (6) the return of the clamps to their starting position. The movement of these clamps is driven by a wedge gear mechanism. The wedge gears are next

Fig. 16. Principle tool for the second preforming process of a three cylinder crankshaft.

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Fig. 18. Deforming stages of a sample aluminium body to load up a closing force on the dies for a precision forging process.

Fig. 17. Principle tool for the precision forging process of a three cylinder crankshafts.

to the clamps and powered by the ram. All tool components are kinematically controlled for the special requirements of the forged crankshaft type. The nal tool for the precision forging process is a horizontally divided tool with punches integrated in the upper and the lower die. The intermediate part geometry of the previous process features the shrunk diameter and the correct position of the bearings and pins. Only the crank lever is not yet differentiated into crank arm and counterbalance. The dies represent the geometry of the main bearings and the pins. The punches are designed to form the geometry of the crank levers (Fig. 17). A heating and cooling system controls the temperature of the surfaces between the dies and the punches. The chronological order of the single procedures during this forming step is: (1) the loading of the open dies, (2) the closing of the dies, (3) the motion of the punches, (4) the opening of the dies, and (5) the unloading of the dies. 3.8. Generating the closing force During the precision forging processes the dies have to keep closed to avoid the formation of horizontal thin ash. Therefore, it is necessary to generate a vertical force which presses the upper and the lower die onto each other. There are different possibilities to put on the needed closing force. One option is to include disk springs between the ram and the upper die, respectively, the table and the lower die. When the upper and lower die come in contact with each other during the forging operation they stop moving and subsequently the punches penetrate into the forging die. During this operation the springs between the dies and the punches are compressed and induce the closing force onto the dies. Depending on the geometry of the forged parts, the generated force has to be adjusted to the closing forces to prevent the disengagement of the dies during the ongoing forging operation. An important consideration for the design of a system to induce the closing force is the energy consumption of the forging machine. If the closing force is produced with disk springs the energy is stored in them. The amount of energy stored in the springs can be much larger then the amount of energy necessary for the forming process. During the design of the closing

force inducing system it is therefore essential to match the produced closing force with the needed closing forces. Using disk springs, there are only little possibilities to apply a special prole of the induced force, if the mandatory force at the end of the process is xed. To be able to adapt the produced closing forces the disk springs can be substituted with deformable aluminium bodies. These bodies are produced from the plastic alloy AlMgSi1 (compare Fig. 18). Their geometry was computed using FEM-programs to nd the necessary force function for the process. These forces are used to keep the dies closed. The energy for the production of the closing forces is linked to the plastic deformation of the aluminium bodies. The amount of the energy and the height of the momentary force depend on the geometry of the bodies. Small forces are produced at the beginning of axial deformation, increasing to high forces at the end. This matches to the closing force requirements of the precision forging process. The use of plastic deformation bodies is suited to the experimental investigation because it is possible to produce a specic closing force prole for each process. To retract the tool components after the precision forging process all frames are connected with chains to pull the different components to the initial position again.

Fig. 19. Schematic tool construction of a forming machine for precision forging operations with integrated gas springs responsible for applying the closing force.

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For industrial use it is necessary to integrate a special tool for this task into the forming machine. For this purpose a tool concept for a forming machine was developed by M ller Weinu garten in which the components responsible for applying the closing forces are an integral ingredient of the tool construction. Gas springs are used to apply the closing force (Fig. 19). Employing a different gas pressure, the gas springs are able to be adjusted to different application cases. 4. Conclusion and future areas of research In order to full the demand of economic and ecologic forging processes it can be necessary to shorten the process chain by eliminating machining operations. This requires high precision forging operations regarding the surface quality and dimensional accuracy. One suitable solution is the ashless precision forging technology. The presented precision forging technologies for a gear wheel and a crankshaft consist of multistage processes including preforming operations and a nal forging. Preforming steps can be carried out in closed dies or with a partly open tool system. The principle of the tool concept for the nal forming is the separation of the closing of the dies and the forming through movable punches. The developed technology for the precision forging of an elementary cell is transferable to the precision forging of a whole crankshaft. Design of a process chain for a one cylinder crankshaft represents an intermediate step which suits the purpose of formation of knowledge.

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