Numerical Simulation and Experimental Study on the Weld-Line Movement of Tailor-Welded Blank

Abstract

TWB and its forming technology play important role in lightweight manufacturing for the automobile parts. The weld-line movement during TWB forming process affects the product quality greatly. In this paper, two main influence factors of the movement, BHF and the blank thickness at the both sides of the weld-line, were studied by both the experiments and finite element simulation. The results showed that BHF has significant impact on the weld-line movement, especially when the thickness difference of the blanks in TWB is beyond a certain range. Besides, suitable BHF and thickness of the blanks can not only control the weld-line movement, but also improve the formability of TWB.