Studying the Effect of Process Parameters on Part Depth in Single Point Incremental Forming of AA1050-H14 Aluminum Alloy Sheets

Single Point Incremental Forming (SPIF) is an innovative forming approach for sheet metal that promises an inexpensive and flexible way to produce sheet metal parts in small batches. SPIF allows the production of complex geometries using a computer numerical control machine. In this study, SPIF has been conducted to investigate the effects of sheet thickness, tool diameter, feed rate, and step size on part depth. Statistical tools were used to design the experiments. Analysis of variance, as well as regression and optimization techniques were used to analyze the resulting part depth. Two levels of each parameter were included in a full factorial design. The study found several relations amongst the process parameters and the part depth. In summary, it was proved that the sheet thickness and tool diameter have the greatest effect on the part depth, whereas the step size has a small, but significant one