Research on the effects of coordinate deformation on radial-axial ring rolling process by FE simulation based on in-process control

Radial-axial ring rolling process is an irreplaceable metal forming technology for manufacturing various seamless rings. However, during the process, there exists complex interaction of deformations in the radial and axial directions of the ring, so the coordinate deformation between radial and axial directions has crucial influences on the quality of the rolled ring. In this paper, a reliable FE model based on in-process control for the radial-axial ring rolling process has been established under the ABAQUS/Explicit platform. In this model, the motions of the rolls are real-time controlled based on in-process measurement. Then, taking the ratio of axial to radial feed amount as the key parameter, we explored the effects of the coordinate deformation between radial and axial directions on the radial-axial rolling of sleeve-type rings by FE simulations. It is found that the rational diameter growth rates become fewer for making the sleeve-type ring roundness stay well as the ratio of axial to radial feed amount decreases. The ratio of axial to radial feed amount has slight effects on the precision of the ring diameter when the diameter growth rate is large. With the ratio of axial to radial feed amount increasing, the deformation of the sleeve-type ring becomes more nonuniform, while the temperature distribution becomes more uniform.