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Procedia
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Engineering 00
00 (2017)
(2017) 000–000
000–000
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ScienceDirect
Procedia Engineering 207 (2017) 854–859

International
International Conference
Conference on
on the
the Technology
Technology of
of Plasticity,
Plasticity, ICTP
ICTP 2017,
2017, 17-22
17-22 September
September 2017,
2017,
Cambridge, United Kingdom
Cambridge, United Kingdom

Outwards and inwards crimping of tube ends by single-point

incremental forming
Tong
Tong Wen*,
Wen*, Jie
Jie Zheng,
Zheng, Jian
Jian Qing,
Qing, Ji-zhao
Ji-zhao Fang
Fang
College
College of
of Materials
Materials Science
Science and
and Engineering,
Engineering, Chongqing
Chongqing University,
University, Chongqing
Chongqing 400044,
400044, China
China

Abstract
Abstract

Tube end
Tube end forming
forming is is aa frequently
frequently used
used approach
approach inin the
the production
production of
of tubular
tubular parts.
parts. Traditional
Traditional tube
tube end
end forming
forming isis
conducted
conducted onon press
press with
with dedicated
dedicated punch
punch and
and die.
die. The
The current
current study
study examined
examined aa new
new method
method for
for crimping
crimping open
open tube
tube
ends
ends based
based on
on the
the single-point
single-point incremental
incremental sheet
sheet forming
forming technology.
technology. Al
Al 6061
6061 tubes
tubes with
with outer
outer diameter
diameter of
of 38
38 mm
mm
and
and thickness of 1.0 mm were employed in the study. The results proved that outwards/inwards crimping of open
thickness of 1.0 mm were employed in the study. The results proved that outwards/inwards crimping of open
tube
tube ends
ends can
can be be accomplished
accomplished utilizing
utilizing this
this flexible
flexible method.
method. Tube
Tube wall
wall deformations
deformations areare dominated
dominated by by the
the
combination of processing parameters, especially the feeding path and tool geometry. Compared
combination of processing parameters, especially the feeding path and tool geometry. Compared with the integer with the integer
formation
formation of
of press
press working,
working, though
though incremental
incremental tube
tube end
end crimping
crimping has
has smaller
smaller axial
axial load
load during
during forming,
forming, instability
instability
phenomena
phenomena of the wall are prone to take place due to the localized and asymmetrical action of the
of the wall are prone to take place due to the localized and asymmetrical action of the tool,
tool, and
and the
the
absence
absence of
of die
die constraint
constraint as as well.
well.
©
© 2017
2017 The
The Authors.
Authors. Published
Published by
by Elsevier
Elsevier Ltd.
Ltd.
© 2017 The under
Authors. Published by Elsevier
the Ltd.
scientific committee of the
Peer-review
Peer-review under responsibility
responsibility of
of the scientific committee
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of theof the International
International
International
Conference
Conference
Conference
on
on the
theofTechnology
on the Technology Technology
Plasticity.
of Plasticity
of Plasticity..
Keywords: Tube
Keywords: Tube end
end forming;
forming; incremental
incremental sheet
sheet forming;
forming; crimping;
crimping; deformation;
deformation; instability
instability

1. Introduction
1. Introduction

Tube end
Tube end forming
forming refers
refers to
to the
the production
production of
of various
various tube
tube end
end shapes
shapes by
by means
means of
of aa wide
wide variety
variety of
of processes
processes
such
such as
as expansion/flaring,
expansion/flaring, reduction,
reduction, inversion,
inversion, flanging
flanging and
and tapering
tapering [1].
[1]. The
The technology
technology has
has extensive
extensive applications
applications
in
in fabrication
fabrication of
of thin-walled
thin-walled tubular
tubular components
components like
like pipe
pipe fittings
fittings and
and energy-absorbing
energy-absorbing elements,
elements, etc.
etc. Conventional
Conventional

*
* Corresponding
Corresponding author.
author. Tel.:
Tel.: 0086-13018363383;
0086-13018363383; fax:
fax: 0086-23-65111493.
0086-23-65111493.
E-mail address: wentong@cqu.edu.cn
E-mail address: wentong@cqu.edu.cn

1877-7058
1877-7058 ©© 2017
2017 The
The Authors.
Authors. Published
Published by
by Elsevier
Elsevier Ltd.
Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of
of the
the International
International Conference
Conference on
on the
the Technology
Technology of
of
Plasticity
Plasticity..

1877-7058 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Conference on the Technology of Plasticity.
10.1016/j.proeng.2017.10.841
 Tong Wen et al. / Procedia Engineering 207 (2017) 854–859 855
2 T. Wen, J. Zheng, J. Qing, J.Z. Fang / Procedia Engineering 00 (2017) 000–000

tube end forming is performed by axially compressing the mother tube over a dedicated die, and the wall
deformation depends much on the die geometries [2-4]. Fig. 1(a) shows typical deformation of a tube end over a
conical die under compression. With the increase of pressure, the bottom of tube begins to expand over the die
surface. After that, the subsequent wall deformation has two possible modes: flaring or curling [5]. If the taper angle
 of the die is relatively small, the open end would expand, and fracture takes place at last; under certain
circumstance (e.g.,  is larger than 52° [6]), the open edge would curl upwards under the compression of punch,
turning into a crimping mode. In the latter case, the reversed wall would move upwards without further deformation
if the compression continues, resulted in a deformation mode of inversion [7-9]. Other die shapes, such as the
radiused die, can also be used for inversion as shown in Fig. 1(b). Suitable value of radius r can be calculated by [7]

𝑟𝑟 = [√(2𝐷𝐷 + 𝑡𝑡)𝑡𝑡 + 3𝑡𝑡] / 4 (1)

where D is the outer diameter and t is the thickness of the tube.

Crimping of tube ends is a crucial stage in the whole compression process, for collapse/buckling of the mother
tubes may take place under large axial pressure, and the load usually reaches its largest value at the moment of
crimping [7]. After that, the load almost keeps constant, and the collapse possibility decreases since the structural
stiffness of the tube increases. Moreover, crimping can also be used alone for fabricating tubing.

Fig. 1. Typical deformation modes of tube end under axial compression: (a) over a conical die; (b) over a radiused die.

Conventional tube end forming by press working is hard to satisfy the requirement of efficiency and cost in small
lot production. As a flexible forming technology, incremental sheet forming (ISF) has attracted huge attention in
decades due to its potentials in rapid and economical manufacturing of thin-walled workpiece [10]. Recently, ISF
has been extended to a larger forming range, especially the formation of tubular parts [11]. This paper examined a
flexible method for tube end crimping based on single-point ISF. The main aim is to verify the feasibility of the
method and to explore fundamental rules of tube wall deformation.

2. Method and analysis model

Fig. 2. Principle of incremental tube end crimping; (a) outwards; (b) inwards; (c)-(d) modified bar tool.
856 Tong Wen et al. / Procedia Engineering 207 (2017) 854–859
T. Wen, J. Zheng, J Qing, JZ Fang / Procedia Engineering 00 (2017) 000–000 3

Fig. 2 illustrates the method of outwards and inwards incremental crimping of open tube ends. Modified bar tools
are employed in the processes. To compare the effect of tool shape, two half conical angles of θ, namely 20° and 30°,
were used. Unlike spinning [12], the tubes are vertically fixed on the working table of an incremental forming
machine (model NH3525) throughout the course.
Similar to other ISF processes, incremental tube end crimping is conducted by continuous tool motion under the
control of digital programs. During the course, the tool moves circumferentially, along with downwards and
outwards (if needed) movements. In the current study, two typical tool path strategies, i.e., the circular path and the
spiral path, were used (Fig. 3). The concave transitional area of tool (with radius R) is the main working area.

Fig. 3. Typical feeding paths of tool: (a) Circular path for outwards crimping; (b) Spiral path for outwards crimping; (c) Spiral path for inwards
crimping.

Seamless tubes made of 6061 aluminum alloy with thickness of 1.0 mm and outer diameter of 38 mm, were
employed in the experiments. The lubrication is general machine oil. The numerical simulations were conducted in
Abaqus®. Coulomb’s friction law was applied with a friction coefficient of 0.2 between the tool and tube wall. Other
information about the FEA (finite-element analysis) can refer to the author’s former publications [11].

3. Results and discussion

3.1 Basic deformation feature

Fig. 4. Experiment results of incremental tube end crimping (spiral path): (a-b) outwards; (c-d) inwards.

Fig. 5. Experiment and simulation results of thickness distribution after forming. (a) outwards crimping; (b) inwards crimping.
 Tong Wen et al. / Procedia Engineering 207 (2017) 854–859 857
4 T. Wen, J. Zheng, J. Qing, J.Z. Fang / Procedia Engineering 00 (2017) 000–000

Fig. 4 shows the experimental samples of outwards/inwards incremental tube end crimping. The results proved
that crimping of open tube ends can be performed by the method. Thus, it provides an alternative approach for small
lot production of tubing with specific end shapes.
Fig. 5 gives a comparison of experimental and theoretical thickness distribution after forming. It can be seen that
the main thickness variation in outwards crimping is thinning, while it is thickening in inwards crimping. As in press
working, this variation depends much on the state of circumferential strain, that is to say, it is tensile or compressive.
Moreover, due to the axial compression of tool, top areas of the wall are thickening in both the outwards and
inwards crimping. Typical defects are presented in Fig. 6.

Fig. 6. Typical defects: (a) crack; (b) distortion; (c) unevenness; (d) axial buckling; (e) circumferential wrinkling.

3.2 Effect of tool geometry and feeding path on wall deformation

Table 1 Processing parameters in different forming cases

① ② ③ ④ ⑤ ⑥ ⑦ ⑧ ⑨ ⑩ ⑪ ⑫ ⑬ ⑭ ⑮
R 10 10 5 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 3 3 3 2
∆r 0.4 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1
∆z 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.3 0.15 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 K=0.3 K=0.4 K=0.3
θ 30° 30° 30° 30° 30° 30° 30° 30° 20° 30° 30° 30° 30° 30° 20°
R - Transition radius of tool; ∆r – Radial increment between each step of tool path; ∆z – Axial increment between each step of tool path; K –
Thread pitch of spiral path. Cases ○
1 to ○
12 use circular path, ○
13 to ○
15 use spiral path. The unit of length is millimeter.

Fig. 7. Tube samples formed under various conditions. Corresponding processing parameters are listed in Table. 1.
858 Tong Wen et al. / Procedia Engineering 207 (2017) 854–859
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Fig. 7 and table 1 present the experiment results under various conditions. It can be seen that tool geometry and
feeding path are two crucial factors in the control of wall deformation during incremental crimping; it is the
combined action of tool shape and moving path that determines the deformation. Since the mechanical features of
incremental crimping is different from those in press working, Eq. 1 cannot be directly used to calculate R-value of
the tool (Fig. 2); however, Eq. 1 can give a referential range of R, which can be adjusted later according to the
results of numerical simulation.

Fig. 8. Tube deformation and load curves under different forming conditions. (Circular path: △r=0.1 mm, △z=0.3 mm, R=3 mm; Spiral path:
K=0.3 mm, △r=0.1 mm, R=3 mm)

If the tool was made, selecting appropriate path is an efficient way to control the deformation. Fig. 8 shows the
experimental and simulation results and the simulated load curves using two types of tool path. It can be seen that
the load is smooth and the deformation is even using spiral path. On the contrary, circular path incurs abrupt change
of the force between the feeding intervals, leading to uneven deformation of the wall.

3.3 Instability of tube wall

Fig. 9. Loads of the tool under different feeding parameters during outwards crimping: (a) axial direction; (b) radius direction.

During incremental crimping, tube wall is axially and radially compressed by the tool, and in inwards crimping
the wall bears circumferential pressure simultaneously. If the pressure exceeds the limitation, instability such as
axial collapse/buckling and circumferential wrinkling would take place, as shown in Figs. 6(d) and (e). Compression
instabilities can occur in the stages of elastic and elastic-plastic deformation. According to the theory of structural
mechanics, the occurrence possibility of instability of a thin-walled structure depends on many aspects, especially
the load, structure stiffness and the constraint situation. For specific tubular part, the critical tool pressure is an
 Tong Wen et al. / Procedia Engineering 207 (2017) 854–859 859
6 T. Wen, J. Zheng, J. Qing, J.Z. Fang / Procedia Engineering 00 (2017) 000–000

essential variable. Fig. 9(a) and Fig. 9(b) show the axial (z direction) and transverse (x-y direction) forces of the tool
under different conditions. It can be seen that small feeding rate can decrease the force and then the trend of
instability is lower.
Compared with the integral formation on press, instability of tube wall during inwards incremental crimping is
prone to take place due to the absence of die constraint. Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 10, the localized wall
deformation under the asymmetric pressure of tool would promote the wrinkling of wall. Similar phenomenon in the
incremental tube end shrinking has been found in the former study of the authors [11].

Fig. 10. The localized tool pressure causes asymmetric wall deformation.

4. Conclusions

(1) Based on the single-point incremental sheet forming technology, dieless outwards/inwards crimping of open
tube ends can be accomplished with a simply modified bar tool. This flexible method is suitable for fabricating
small-lot tubular parts.
(2) Main failure during incremental tube end crimping include axial collapse of mother tubes, edge crack
(outwards crimping), edge wrinkling (inwards crimping), etc. The combined effects of processing parameters,
especially the tool geometry and feeding path, are crucial in the control of wall deformation. Decreasing feeding rate
can reduce the load and then the failure tendency is less.
(3) Compared with conventional tube end forming by press working, though incremental tube crimping has
smaller axial load during forming, the localized asymmetrical pressure of tool imposed on the wall would increase
the occurrence possibility of instability.
(4) Spiral tool path can obtain more smooth deformation of the wall, while circular tool path incurs sudden
change of the force, leading to uneven wall deformation.

Acknowledgements

This project is supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51575066).

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