On the electromagnetic sheet metal forming: Numerical simulation

The commercial FE Code ANSYS is employed for the simulation of the electromagnetic sheet metal forming process. A seven-turn pancake coil with a ferromagnetic outer screen is considered as the forming tool. Details on FE model building are thoroughly discussed. The input load is the current of the coil experimentally measured by means of a Rogowski coil. The deformation characteristics of the workpiece as well as the electromagnetic parameters of the high-energy process, i.e. the magnetic flux density around the conductors and the Lorentz forces acting on the workpiece, are calculated numerically. An equivalent circuit method is used to validate the electromagnetic model. Results from both analyses are in good agreement, indicating that the proposed FE model may improve the potentiality for the industrial application of the process, contributing also to a better understanding of its physical principles.