Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852
DOI 10.1007/s00170-010-3006-7
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Computer-aided structural design of punches and dies
for progressive die based on functional component
Zhi-Xin Jia & Hong-Lin Li & Xue-Chang Zhang &
Ji-Qiang Li & Bo-Jie Chen
Received: 12 February 2010 / Accepted: 29 October 2010 / Published online: 18 November 2010
# Springer-Verlag London Limited 2010
Abstract Punches and dies are the real operating components
and account for a large portion in the progressive die design
procedure. This paper presents a structural design tool for
punches and dies for progressive dies of motor core based on
functional component. The descriptive model of punch and
die component is established which contains three aspect of
information, geometry information, assembly-related con-
straint attribute and hole-related information on plates. Based
on the classification and 3D modeling method of punches and
dies, the library of components for punches and dies is set up
according to the descriptive model. Methods for modeling and
data management for components of punches and dies are
discussed in detail. The proposed tool for progressive die for
motor cores can complete the design of five classes of punches
and dies and generate holes on plates automatically. This
design tool is constructed on a PC and integrated with a
SolidWorks CAD system. The progressive die design for the
motor core of house appliance is employed as a practical
example to demonstrate the effectiveness of the design tool.
The results reveal that it can dramatically improve the design
quality and can save both time and costs.
Keywords Punches and dies . Functional components .
Progressive die . Computer-aided design
Z.-X. Jia (*) : X.-C. Zhang : J.-Q. Li
Ningbo Institute of Technology, Zhejiang University,
1# Qianhu Road,
Ningbo 315100, People’s Republic of China
e-mail: jzx@nit.zju.edu.cn
H.-L. Li : B.-J. Chen
School of Mechanical Engineering, Ningbo University,
818 Fenghua Road,
Ningbo 315211, People’s Republic of China
1 Introduction
In a progressive die, the workpiece is produced in a number
of steps. At each station, one or more die operations, such
as piercing, notching, blanking, coining, shaving, drawing,
and forming, are performed on the sheet metal strip. The
result is a finished workpiece at every stroke of the press [1,
2]. Because of their competitive productivity and perfor-
mance, progressive dies for producing sheet metal parts in
mass production have been widely applied in various
industries such as aerospace, electronics, machine tools,
automobiles, and refrigeration. However, the structure of a
progressive die is complex and the design cycle is long.
In order to improve the productivity of the die designer,
researchers all over the world have spent a lot of time and
effort trying to develop computer-aided design and manu-
facturing systems for press tools since 1970s. In early
research effort, computers were mainly used to improve
productivity in drawing and to perform particular design
calculations and Numeric Control programming. Most of
the important decisions, such as the design of punch shapes,
the assessment of formability and the development of the
strip layout, were still made interactively by the user [3].
Researches and developments of progressive die design
automation systems was given a new dimension in the late
1980s and early 1990s when the applications of artificial
intelligence techniques in engineering design started to take
off [1]. Cheok and Nee presented a review of researches
and developments in the design automation of tools for
metal stampings before 1998 and illustrated a knowledge-
based framework for developing an integrated planning-
and-design aid for the die designer, which have two
separate data- and knowledge-bases. The first level contains
generic information from textbooks, component manufac-
turers’ catalogs, etc., while the second level contains a
838
company’s specific design rules, parameters and tooling
components [1].
Since early 1990s, the developments of automated
design systems are studied based on knowledge engineering
and intelligent engineering by researchers. Ismail outlines
two approaches for the development of a feature-based
system which is used to support the detail design of
progressive press tools on AutoCAD [3]. Jiang et al.
proposed a flexible and complete insert representation
scheme and analyzed the complex assembly relationships
and constraints between inserts and components [4]. Wang
Bo et al. did some research on assembly design for
progressive die based on association technology on Auto-
CAD [5]. Kumar and Singh of Hindu College of Engineering
from India developed an intelligent system for automatic
modeling of progressive die and presented an expert system
for automation of strip-layout design process using the
production rule-based expert system approach on AutoCAD
[6–9]. Researchers at Pusan National University developed a
system written in AutoLISP on the AutoCAD for strip layout
and die layout and a tool kit on the SmartCAM software for
modeling and postprocessing with a PC [10–12]. They also
developed a system for electric product with bending and
piecing operations [13]. Tor et al. proposed a knowledge-
based blackboard framework for stamping process planning
in progressive die design [14]. Li et al. developed an
integrated modeling and process planning system for
planning bending operations of progressive dies using C++
and ObjectARX of AutoCAD [15]. Farsi et al. described a
two-stage method to determine bending sequence in pro-
gressive dies [16]. Chang et al. established a genetic
algorithm to solve the problems of ranking the working
steps in progressive dies using AutoCAD as a drawing tool
[17]. Pilani et al. proposed a method for generating an
optimal die face design automatically based on die face
formability parameters by taking advantage of neural
network [18]. Tang et al. established a constraint assembly
model based on level structure through the integration of
assembly model of the constraint relation tree and level
mode1 [19]. Most of the design systems mentioned above
belong to 2D patterns [3, 5–15, 17, 18].
Recently, as a result of the fast development of computer
technology and of 3D CAD software, 3D CAD software
has been increasingly used in progressive die design.
Ghatrehnaby and Arezoo developed an automated nesting
and piloting system for progressive die according to
minimum scrap strategy on 3D SolidWorks [20]. Zhou
Sheng et al. discussed the application of UDF in blanking
punch structure design based on UG software [21]. Lin et
al. at National Kaohsiung First University of Science and
Technology, Taiwan, developed structural design systems
for 3D drawing dies based on functional features in Pro/E
and CATIA software [22, 23]. Lin et al. also developed an
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852
integrated RE/RP/CAD/CAE/CAM system for magnesium
alloy shell of mobile phone in 3D software [24]. Jia et al.
studied relationships between the correlating parts and the
plate holes and describes an automated hole design system
for progressive dies developed on SolidWorks [25].
The progressive design usually consists two phases,
stamping process planning-and-die structure design. Most
of the work is concentrated in the computer-aided process
planning [6–18]. Compared with the much work done in
the computer-aided process planning, less work in structure
design has been done. Jia et al. presented a relationship
model of structural relevance in progressive dies [26]. Jiang
et al. discussed the inserts design automation and proposed
a representation scheme of inserts using an object-oriented,
feature-based approach [4]. Wang Bo et al. discussed
association technology in assembly design for precision
progressive die on AutoCAD [5]. Methods of standard parts
library construction and modeling methods of punches and
dies were discussed in references [27, 28] on SolidWorks.
Zhao et al. discussed correlated design of standardized parts
and components in CAD system for progressive die on
AutoCAD[29]. Zhou et al. discussed the application of
UDF in blanking punch structure design based on UG
software [21]. Jia et al. gave the classification of plate holes
according to their structural types and relationships between
the correlating parts and the plate holes. Taking advantage
of pre-built design knowledge and standard parts database,
they developed a system which can generate the correlated
holes on the main plates of progressive dies on SolidWorks.
But the proposed system is only applicable to holes design
for standard or parameterized parts or assembles such as
screws, pins, lifter assembles, and so on [25].
In recent years, several commercial progressive die
design systems are available in the market, such as PDW
(Progressive Die Wizard) on NX, PDX (Progressive Die
eXpert) on Pro/ENGINEER, LOGPRESS on SolidWorks,
TopSolid/Progress, et al. The software mentioned above
contain “generic” design rules provided by die design
textbooks and course materials and can simplify the design
procedure of punches and dies to some degree compared
with basic CAD molds. However, each die company
concentrates on several classes of dies and has its own
company’s specific design rules, parameters and tooling
components. Furthermore, die companies treat design
knowledge and experience built up over the years as
intellectual property that they are reluctant to share with
others. Hence, the development of design tool for punches
and dies is necessary especially for the companies which
have their own specific component library and in-house
design rules.
In progressive die design, some punches and dies can be
determined according to the edge contour, which can be
regarded as functional feature. Each functional feature can
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852
be treated as a design unit. Once a functional feature is
selected, a set of functional component of punch and die is
decided. Then every position, dimension, constraint and
hole for the component of punch and die is determined,
which must follow its design criteria and standards. Hence,
the functional component is an assembly composed of
punch and die which includes relations, parameters,
constraint and holes according to their design criteria and
standards. This paper introduces how to deal with the
functional components, how to combine the design knowl-
edge with the assembly.
In order to make die design more flexible and efficient
with higher quality, this paper proposes a computer-aided
structural design tool for punches and dies based on
functional components in SolidWorks software. Accord-
ing to the design norm and standard part library of our
partner who is a local progressive die company majored
in progressive die for motor cores, a descriptive model
for punch and die component is established that
combines the design criteria and functional features,
which shows how to express the position, constraint,
dimension, and holes for selected functional component.
Based on well-organized die design knowledge base and
components library and an integrated 3D CAD environ-
ment, the tool is able to fulfill the design of punches and
dies, and holes on the main plates of a progressive die,
such as upper die shoe, lower die shoe, punch holding
plate, punch backing plate, die holding plate, and so on.
Upon user’s input of strip layout, selection of die-set,
selection of the contour on strip layout, the punches and
dies are inserted into the die assembly and corresponding
holes on the plates are constructed automatically. The
tool has been implemented on a parametric and feature-
based CAD system, SolidWorks. An example is provided
to demonstrate the effectiveness in progressive die
design.
The rest of the paper is organized as follows. Section 2
describes the design and fabrication of progressive die for
motor core. Section 3 explains the descriptive model of
functional components for punches and dies. Section 4
illustrates the design method of punches, dies and
corresponding holes based on functional components in
detail. Section 5 provides a progressive die for the motor
Fig. 1 Pictures of stator core and rotator core for motor
839
core as an example to demonstrate the design procedure by
using the proposed tool. Section 6 gives conclusions.
2 Design and fabrication of a motor core using
progressive die
The main function of an alternating-current motor is to
produce torque by the reaction between a varying magnetic
field generated in the stator and the current induced in the
coils of the rotor [30]. Motor cores play an important role in
many electro-magnetic devices because they influence the
performance of the motor greatly. As shown in Figure 1, the
motor cores are fabricated by laminating a number of thin
silicon steel sheets together to increase the electro-magnetic
efficiency of the motor.
Traditionally the production processes of the motor cores
are very complex. Usually the procedure includes three
steps. First the stamping sheets are manufactured by several
compound dies, then the stamping sheets are sorted and
packed up, at last the stator and rotator cores are stacked by
riveting and welding on special equipments. The process is
inefficient, large-errors, and difficult to control the quality
of the cores.
The use of multi-station progressive die with automatic
laminating and stacking can improve the efficiency greatly
and ensure the bonding strength between laminated sheets
to meet the requirements of large quantities. Hence, the
progressive dies for motor cores are adopted increasingly.
This kind of die can perform operations, such as piercing,
notching, blanking, embossing, piercing, stacking and
trimming at a single setup and can form the stator core
and rotator cores directly.
Figure 2 shows a schematic description of the motor core
for household appliances. The thickness of each sheet is
0.5 mm and 50 sheets are laminated. A small portion of the
first sheet of cores is pierced through while the
corresponding portion of the succeeding sheet become
protruded at the end of the notching or embossing process,
and deformed into a concave–convex shape. In the
lamination procedure, two sheets are joined together by
fitting the convex part of a sheet into the concave part of
another sheet. This lamination procedure is repeated until
840
A -0.050
-0.046
(a) Rotator core
Fig. 2 A group of motor cores for household appliances
50 sheets have been joined. According to the geometry
figure of the laminating part, there are four types, L-type,
V-type, circular-type and rectangular type, as shown in
Fig. 3. The laminating type of rotator core and stator core
given in Fig. 2 belongs to L-type and rectangular type,
respectively.
The progressive die design procedure is composed of
two phases, operations (stamping process) planning-and-die
structure design. Figure 4 shows the relevant strip layout
for the cores shown in Fig. 2. Ten stations are adopted to
produce the cores, ①–⑤ mainly for holes on rotor and
pilot holes; ⑥ laminating rotor core; ⑦ idle station; ③, ⑧,
⑨ mainly for holes on stator; ⑩ laminating stator core.
The structure design of multi-station progressive die for
motor cores is as follows: (1) according to the size of the
strip layout, the die-set is determined and the overall
structure of die is outlined; (2) then inserts, punches, dies
and other forming parts are designed including positioning
and locating holes; (3) based on the specific circumstances,
assistive devices are inserted such as pilot pins, ejectors,
screws, dowel pins, springs, standard parts, etc. The
progressive die structure design costs about 2/3 design
V-type laminating Circular-type
laminating
Fig. 3 Four types of laminating adopted by motor cores
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852
(b) Stator core
cycle time. Figure 5 shows the basic structure of a typical
progressive die for motor core.
The design of punch and die is an important task in the
die structure design. The purpose of this paper is to develop
an automated design tool for punches and dies of
progressive dies for motor core based on functional
component. Taking advantage of well-organized die design
knowledge base, library of subassemblies for components
composed of punches and dies, our tool is able to output 3D
punches and dies and their engineering drawings automat-
ically, and holes are also generated for locating and
avoiding the punches and dies on the main plates of a
progressive die.
3 The descriptive model for component of punch and die
for progressive die for motor core
3.1 Definition of functional components
To develop a progressive die design system with a high
degree of automation, flexibility and accuracy, it is essential
L-type laminating Rectangular-type
laminating
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852 841

(a) Blank layout

(b) Strip layout

Fig. 4 The blank layout and strip layout for cores shown in Fig. 2

Upper die shoe

Punch backing
plate
Stripper
backing plate
Punch holder
plate
(invisible)
Punches
Stripper plate

Dies
Die holder
plate

Bottom die
shoe

Die backing Bottom die

plate shoe backing
plate

Fig. 5 The structure of a typical progressive die for motor core. Note: some parts were hidden and some in transparent state in order to illustrate clearly
842
to have a systematic representation of the related objects
and process from the initial modeling to the final output [4].
Punches and dies are key working parts which determine
the geometry, size, and precision of the work piece. Due to the
specificity of the different stamping process, the punches and
dies have a variety of figures and structure types. For a set of
multi-station progressive die to produce motor cores, the
working area can be summarized and classified as a series of
components of punches and dies, such as the circular punch
and die for piercing inner holes, the rectangular punch and die
for grouping and laminating, the curved punch and die for
grouping and laminating, the blanking punch and die for
rotator and stator strip, etc. Each component of punch and die
is corresponding to an edge contour on the strip layout and a
series of holes on the main plates.
Functional component is composed of function and
geometrical structure. Function is the description of the
component, which reveals the specific purpose and character-
istic. The geometrical structure is manifestation of the
function. Hence, functional component is the integrity of the
function and geometrical structure. Therefore, the designer
can treat each functional component as a design unit.
For example, Fig. 6 shows two types of components of
punches and dies, which are for circular edge contour.
When the diameter of the circle is larger than 6 mm, Type
A circular punch is adopted, the component is shown as
Fig. 6a. The holes on the relevant plates for installing the
component are shown as Fig. 6b. When the diameter of the
circle is smaller than 6 mm, type B circular punch is
adopted to improve the strength, the component is shown as
Fig. 6c. Hence, the holes on stripper backing plate and
stripper plate for installing the component are varied, as
shown in Fig. 6d.
3.2 The descriptive model for component of punch and die
As illustrated in Fig. 6, the component of punch and die
defined in this paper is actually a subassembly of punch and
die. In order to realize the automation design of punches
and dies, the descriptive model for component of punch and
die should be established firstly. In this paper, the
descriptive model of punch and die component contains
three aspect of information: (1) geometry information; (2)
assembly-related constraint attribute; (3) hole-related infor-
mation on plates, as shown in Fig. 7.
1. Geometry information contains the edge contour that
represent the figure for cutting or shaping, the 3D parts
of punch and dies which also contain drawing-related
attributes such as the type of material, the hardness
requirement, a description, etc., a group of dimension
parameters for punches and dies.
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852
2. Assembly-related constraint attribute is composed of
twofold mating information. The inner mating infor-
mation is composed of a series of constraints for the
punch and die that ensure the correct position. The
outer mating constraints can be mating relations or
changeable parameters for equations that are adopted
for the component to be mounted onto the die-set.
3. Hole-related information on plates supply the contours
and/or depth values for holes generated by extruding or
rotating operation. For example, for component of
punch and die—type A, shown in Fig. 6a and b, six
holes must be generated. They are the hole on punch
plate, the through hole on stripper backing plate, the
clearance fit hole on stripper plate, the interference fit
hole on die plate, two relief holes on die backing plate
and bottom die shoe seperately.
In our descriptive model for component of punch and
die, only two parts, punch and die are considered. Jiang RD
et al. [4] presented schematic representation of an insert
object which is composed of the following three groups of
attributions: (1) drawing-related attributes; (2) fundamental
components; and (3) assembly-related constraint attributes.
They treated subassembly of punch, screw and supporting
plate for fixing the punch as the functional insert group.
Because there are several kinds of supporting plates and a
variety of locations of the screw relative to the punch plate,
we deal with them in a special module when punches and
dies are finished.
4 Design method of punches and dies for progressive die
based on functional components
In order to realize the design automation of punches, dies
and relevant holes, the library for components of punches
and dies must be set up and the data management method
for parameters should be determined. As our work is done
on the basis of our partner’s design norm, maintainability
and openness as well as reliability of the library must be
considered for future changes. So the principle of our
library and the management method for parameters is
propitious to edit, add, and delete for user as far as possible.
The library for components of punches and dies for
progressive die of motor core consists in parts and
subassemblies that contain the information mentioned in
Part 3. The management method for parameters adopts
Excel files that can be visited through ODBC interface.
4.1 Classification of punches and dies
According to the design norm of our partner who is a
progressive die company, the punches and dies are
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852 843

Fig. 6 Two types of compo-

nents of punch and die for
circular holes
Circular
punch—type
A

Circle on
strip layout,
diameter ≥
6mm

Circular die

(a) Component of punch (b) The holes on the relevant plates for installing
and die—Type A component of punch and die—Type A

Circular
punch—type
B

Circle on
strip layout,
diameter ≤

Circular die

(c) Component of punch (d) The holes on the relevant plates for installing
and die—Type B component of punch and die—Type B

classified into 3 types, Standard, half-Standard, and non-
standard punches and dies. The design method will be
discussed below in detail.
1. Standard punches and dies
Standard punches and dies have fixed structure and size,
e.g., the punch for pilot pin hole are standard as shown in
Fig. 8. The punches for pilot pin hole are composed of
three-dimensional types with diameter of 6.02, 8.02, and
10.02 mm.
2. Half-standard punches and dies
Half-standard punches and dies have fixed shape but
changeable dimensional size. As shown in Fig. 8, the edge
diameter d is changing with different work piece. So the
dimension d, D of punch changes accordingly.
844 Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852

Edge contour irregular shape contours whose punches and dies are
Geometry
needed to design particularly, e.g., Fig. 9a shows the
Punch part, die part
information stamping piece for rotator and stator, Fig. 9b, c, d are
Dimension parameters punches and dies for the slot holes and blanking separately.

Inner mating relation of

punch and die
4.2 Three-dimensional parametric modeling of punches
Component Assembly-related
of punch and constraints and dies
Mating relation for the
die attribute
component in the die
set Three methods are usually adopted to fulfill the solid
modeling of parts, the configuration method, dimension-
Hole related Contour of holes driven method and programming method. The first one is
information on
plates
easy which establish the parts by using configuration
Method for generating
holes on corresponding
function. The dimension-driven method first establish the
plates model of a fixed structure for each type with named
variable parameter, then new model is obtained by
Fig. 7 Descriptive model for components of punches and dies for
progressive die for motor core
modifying the value of the parameters by program. The
third establishes the model by programming which contains
3. Non-standard punch and die the rules, the parameters and relationship constraints. In this
Though the most edge contour with regular shapes such paper, the dimension-driven method is used for standard
as circle and rectangle can be summarized up and be treated and half-standard punches and dies. The programming
as half-standard punches and dies, there still exist many method is adopted for non-standard punches and dies.

(1) The 3D modeling of standard and half-standard

punches and dies
For standard punches and dies with given param-
eters like circular punch for pilot in Fig. 8, the method
of configuration of part can be utilized to fulfill the
variable model, as shown in Fig. 10.
The dimension-driven method combine the
programming and the excel file to drive the model to
update. For example, Fig. 11 is one circular die of type
A, the procedure of parameterizing is listed below.
(a) First build a model like Fig. 11, name the
dimensions which need to be changed, d, D0, H;
(b) Set up an EXCEL file, the content is as Table 1,
the meaning of “∼”and “()”are value range and
variable which are predefined in the program.
(c) Input the diameter value of the circle, the die with
updated parameter value is generated correspondingly.
(2) The 3D modeling of non-standard punches and dies
Though the non-standard punches and dies are
changing with the workpiece, the structural character-
istics can be summarized according to design norm of
punches and dies. The 3D model of non-standard
punches and dies can be obtained by programming
with “extrude”, “cut”, “revolve” functions after the
user select the edge contour.

4.3 The library of components of punches and dies

In the design of progressive dies, the punches and dies

Fig. 8 Circular punch of type A made of hard alloy usually are inserted into the plates made
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852
(a) Stamping (b) The punch and (c) The punch and die
piece of rotator die inserts for inserts for groove hole
and stator groove hole of
rotator
Fig. 9 Non-standard punches and dies
of Cr12. There exist complex constraints among compo-
nent of the punch and die, the plates and the edge
contour on the strip layout. The component of punch and
die must consider relevant constraints thoroughly, such as
location constraints, dimension constraints and adherent
constraints.
According to the descriptive model of punch and die
component, we set up five classes of components of
punches and dies, circular, rectangular, curved, slot, and
blanking, as shown in Fig. 12. The circular, rectangular,
curved components of punches and dies can be regarded as
standard components whose design process can be normal-
ized. While the components of punches and dies for slot
and blanking vary for different motor cores, the design of
such components is complex, which can be obtained by
programming with “extrude”, “cut”, “revolve” functions
like non-standard parts. However, the components of all the
five classes contain the information as that in the
descriptive model explicitly or implicitly.
As the components of punches and dies contain
geometric and functional information, how to set up the
subassembly is a key problem that combines the twofold
information. In SolidWorks software, FeatureManager
design tree is interrelated with all the features of the
assembly and can be visited by user’s program. So in this
paper, parameter method is adopted to establish the
Fig. 10 The punch for pilot pin
hole and its configuration
(a) Punch for pilot pin hole with
named dimensions
845
(d) The punch and die inserts for
blanking of stator
of stator
subassembly of the component of punch and die, and
FeatureManager design tree in SolidWorks is used to
manage the information. In the below part, the modeling
procedure for component of rectangular punch and die is
selected as an example to show the method in detail, as
shown in Figs. 13, 14 and 15.
1. Model two consisted parts for rectangular punch and
die component
The component of rectangular punch and die is
composed of “B19.1 Rectangle Punch for counting” and
“B12.3 Rectangle Punch for counting”, as shown in
Fig. 12b. The punch and die are half-standard parts
according to the design norm of our partner. The models
of the two parts for reloading in subassembly are
established by using method described in 4.2.
2. Add inner mating relationship of the component
As shown in Fig. 13, in the column of “Mates” of
FeatureManager design tree, there are six mating con-
straints which are inner mating relation of punch and die
component.
3. Construct the geometry datum for the component
When the component is assembled onto the progressive
die assembly, the geometry data are needed to fix the
(b) The configuration of the punch
846
Fig. 11 Circular die of type A
component in correct position. For component of rectangu-
lar punch and die, three datum planes in Fig. 13, “Mating
plane L”, “Mating plane S” and “Mating plane” are
constructed to establish coincidence constraints with rele-
vant planes or points in the progressive die assembly. While
two other datum plane, “Bottom plane of die plate”, “upper
plane of die plate”, are driven by the position parameters in
the progressive die assembly for realizing the open or shut.
4. Construct the relevant sketches for holes on plates
For component of rectangular punch and die, six holes
are needed, three holes on punch holding plate, stripper
holding plate and stripper plate, the other three holes on die
holding plate, die backing plate and bottom die shoe
respectively, as shown in Fig. 13b (note that we do not
consider the avoiding hole on stripper holding plate for the
backing plate and the screw). In the redeveloped program,
holes on the plates are generated by the procedure “given
sketch—derived sketch—extrude cut”. Therefore, the given
sketch for holes must be set up beforehand that have correct
dimensions according to the die company’s design require-
ments. For example, the throughout hole on punch plate is
used for installing the punch. The sketch of the hole is
derived from the top part of the punch. So one sketch,
Table 1 Driving parameters table
Parameter
ShapeType d D0 H subassembly is inserted into the die assembly.
1 1∼2 8 25,
2 2∼6 (d)+6 25,
6 6∼10 (d)+8 25,
10 10∼16 (d)+12 25,
16 16∼20 (d)+13 25,
END
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852
“Hole on punch plate”, is adopted to express it. While there
are two holes on stripper plate in order to reduce the fitting
height between the punch and the stripper plate, the upper
one is a circular hole and the below one is a rectangular-
section hole. So two sketches are given. “Hole on stripper
plate 1” is the rectangular sketch for extruding cut. “Hole
on stripper plate 2 depth 4” is a sketch for circular hole with
depth 4 mm. The six hole-sketches are shown in Fig. 13a.
5. Set up relation between controlling parameters and
feature dimensions of assembly
In order to update the subassembly quickly and simplify
the work of programming, Equations are adopted to
associate with the inner controlling parameters. Figure 14
shows the equations used in the subassembly for compo-
nent of rectangular punch and die. Here, B=3, H=25, R=3,
LENGTH=10, WIDTH=8 are five controlling parameters,
see also Fig. 15.
Where
B Width for punch and die
H Height of the rectangular die, it is the same
as the height of the die plate
R Radius of fillet of the rectangular die
LENGTH, Length and width of the rectangular die
WIDTH
The five equations listed below associate the controlling
parameters with the features of the punch and die.
“H@Extrude1@B19.1 RectanglePunchforCounting.
Part”=“B”
“H1@Extrude1@B12.3 RecktangleDieforCounting.
Part”=“H”
“D1@Sketch1@B12.3 RecktangleDieforCounting.
Part”=“LENGTH”
“D2@Sketch1@B12.3 RecktangleDieforCounting.
Part”=“WIDTH”
“B1@Sketch1@B12.3 RecktangleDieforCounting.
Part”=“B”+0.06
The equation “D1@Hole on die plate 2 depth
5”=“LENGTH”+1 determines the radius of the avoiding
hole on die plate.
While the four equations below ensure the integrity for
the open and shut state of die after the component
29
29 “StripperPlate_BOTTOMPLANE”=10
29 “DiePlate_UPPERPLANE”=10
29
“TGB_BUTTOMPLANE@Bottom plane of stripper
29
plate”=“StripperPlate_BOTTOMPLANE”
“AGB_UPPERPLANE@Upper Plane of die plate ”=“Die
Plate_UPPERPLANE”
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852 847

(a) Circular (b) (c) (d) Slot (e) Blanking

Rectangular Curved
Fig. 12 Five classes of components of punches and dies

Geometry
information

Assembly-related
constraint
attribute

Hole related
information
on plates

(a) Rectangular punch and die component including (b) Drawing of

information as the descriptive model rectangular punch and
die component
Fig. 13 Rectangular punch and die component
848
Fig. 14 Parameters and equations used in rectangular punch and die component
So, the functional subassembly for component of punch
and die established in such method combines the structure
information, assembly-related information and hole infor-
mation perfectly.
4.4 Data management for components of punches and dies
Data management is very important which affluences the
framework and the maintenance of the design tool. In this
paper, a hierarchy of the data involving twofold excel data
files is adopted.
The first level is the catalog of all the functional
components, as shown in Table 2.
The meaning of each item in Table 2 is listed below:
NAME: name of the subassembly;
DATA_PATH: path name for .xls data file of the
subassembly;
DATA: name of .xls data file of the subassembly;
MOD_PATH: path name for .sldprt file of the
subassembly;
H
Fig. 15 Contour on strip layout for component of rectangular punch
and die for counting
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852
MODEL: name of .sldprt file of the subassembly;
DESCRIPTION: lists of the names of the sketches for
generating holes on the corresponding plates.
When the specific component is selected to design,
the second level of data file and subassembly file are
visited according to the pathname indicated in the
catalog file.
Also, we use the rectangular punch and die compo-
nent for counting as an example to illustrate, the
format of excel data file which save the five
corresponding parameters is shown in Table 3. A
common functional program is designed to read Excel
file formatted into starting with “PARAMETERS” and
ending with “END”.
The design procedure for punch and die component is
interactive. The real edge contour is determined by the
strip layout. The parameters listed in the second level
Excel file are the data for program initializing. This data
management method provides convenience for the
designer to master the design tool. At the same time,
the construction method also ensures the openness and
the maintainability of the library.
4.5 The design method of punches and dies for motor core
progressive dies based on functional components
According to the characters of motor core progressive
dies, five classes of punches and dies are summarized
based on the design norm. Library for components of
punches and dies is set up and management data are
established. A design tool for punches and dies is
developed on 3D software, SolidWorks. The architecture
of the tool is shown in Fig. 16.
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852 849

Table 2 The catalog of the functional components

NAME DATA_PATH DATA MOD_PATH MODEL DESCRIPTION

Rectangular- \data\Component RectCountAssem. \data\Component RectComponentfor Hole on punch plate,

assemble-for- \RectL xls \RectL Counting.sldasm Hole on stripper plate 1,
counting \RectCountAssem \RectCountAssem Hole on stripper plate 2
depth 4, Hole on stripper
backing plate, Hole on
die plate 1, Hole on die
plate 2 depth 5
Rectangular- \data\Component RectLaminateAsse. \data\Component RectComponentfor ......
assemble- \RectLaminateAssem xls \RectLaminateAsse Laminate.sldasm
for-laminating
curved -assemble- \data\Component CurvedCountAssem. \data\Component CurvedCountAssem. ......
for-counting \CurvedCountAssem xls \CurvedCountAssem sldasm
...... ...... ...... ...... ...... ......
END

The flow chart for design components of punches and In order to keep the stability of the library, the selected
dies is shown in Fig. 17. Each main step is described in the component subassembly of punch and die is copied to the
following section. working folder with updated parameter value. Then the new
added subassembly is inserted into the progressive die
1. Initialize
assembly. For the accuracy of the part lists of BOM, if there
The step is to initialize the interface dialogue (property is one same subassembly with the same parameter value
sheet) and read the catalog for components of punches and already, then the existing subassembly is inserted.
dies to obtain the pathname for subassembly and
6. Add mating relations
corresponding data file.
Mating constraints are added between the inserted
2. Select the component of punch and die
component subassembly of punch and die and the
Select the menu for one component of punch and die, the progressive die assembly. For example, in the rectangular
property sheet will appear. The interface for rectangular component subassembly of punch and die for counting,
punch and die component is shown in Fig. 17a. two mating plane S, L have been prepared to mate with
3. Select cutting edge profile and contour the geometric line and center point of the edge contour.
The other mating plane is used to add coincidence
Select the edge profile for punching which form the constraint to the top plane of the punch plate. Thus,
cutting edge of punch and die, and outer contour for die. three coincidence constraints make the component sub-
Figure 17b shows the contours to be selected for rectangu-
lar punch and die component for counting.
User interface
4. Update the value of controlling parameters
After selecting the required contours, the required value
for controlling parameters can be obtained from the Circular Rectangular curved Slots punches and
punch and punch and punch and Punch and dies for
contours. Then, the required value is used to update the die die die die blanking of
subassembly, as shown in Fig. 17c. component component component component stator and
rotator
5. Insert subassembly into the progressive die assembly

Table 3 Parameters for rectangular punch and die component

PARAMETERS Punch and die assembly models with Data for management of
hole contour, assisting reference for parameters correlated with
B R LENGTH WIDTH H mating, constraint relationship corresponding assemble and
4 3 10 8 25,29 parts
END
Fig. 16 Framework of the design tool for punches and dies
850 Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852

Fig. 17 Flow chart and

illustration for design of START
punch and die
Saving path and file
Initialization name for the model
and parameters of
the components
Select the type of
inserts assembly

Select cutting edge

and contour

Database of
Update the
parameters for (a) Interface
controlling
the component
parameters

Insert the updated

assembly into the
temporary directory Library of punch
and die
components

Is the same
NO
(b) Contour on strip
component Copy the component from the layout
existing already? temporary directory to
working directory
YES
Mating the component
with the die assembly

Update the
corresponding
equations

Generating holes on
corresponding plates

(c) Updating the

Generating component with
engineering drawing required value

END

assembly of rectangular punch and die be located in the
progressive die correctly.
7. Update equations
When the inserted component is located in the die
assembly, usually the inner mating relationship in the
component is fixed in SolidWorks software. But the die
assembly may have two states, open state and shut state,
and furthermore the distance between upper die and
bottom die is determined by the user. So, the distance
between punch and die of the inserted component should
be adjusted according to the die assembly state. Equa-
tions are used to set up the link between progressive die
assembly and the component subassembly. A traversal
program is developed to associate the equations between
die assembly and component subassembly, that is to say
the value right to the equal sign in equation “‘Stripper
Plate_BOTTOMPLANE’= 10” and “‘DiePlate_UPPER
PLANE’=10” is determined by the parameter values in
die assembly.
8. Generating holes on plates
According to the hole-sketches contained in the punch and
die component, holes are generated on plates, respectively.
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2011) 54:837–852
(a) Strip layout (including the outer contour of die inserts)
(b) Punches and dies (some parts were hidden in order to illustrate clearly)
Fig. 18 Procedures for designing the progressive die for motor core
5 Illustrative example
The developed tool is explained with the design of a progressive
die for the motor core for house appliance, as shown in Fig. 2.
First, the blank layout is drawn, and then the strip layout is
designed as shown in Fig. 3. The strip layout is evaluated and
outer contour is added for die insert and which was inserted
into the die assemble as a layout sketch, as shown in Fig. 18a.
Then, a standard or customized die-set is inserted whose
dimension can be adjusted to the strip layout. From the strip
layout, the edge contours were selected to locate and give
dimensions to the five classes of punch and die components.
In order to design punch and die, the user first indicate the
type, and then the punch or/and die will be inserted into the
assembly and the holes on plates will be generated automat-
ically, as described in Fig. 17. The Engineering drawings can
be obtained automatically. In order to show the punch and die
structure clearly, the die assembly shown in Fig. 18b is dealt
with upper die shoe and bottom die in hidden state.
Punches and dies are real operating components and
account for a large portion in the entire design procedure.
With the help of the design tool, the design time for
punches and dies is shortened to about 1/3. The holes on
plates for mounting the punches and dies are generated
automatically and the engineering drawings of punches and
dies according to the company’s design criteria and stand-
ards also obtained quickly.
6 Conclusions and future works
A structural design CAD tool for punches and dies is
developed on a PC and integrating SolidWorks system
851
using Visual C++. The descriptive model of punch and
die component which contains three aspect of informa-
tion is presented in this paper. Considering the character-
istics of structure design for progressive die for motor
core, the classification and the modeling method of
punches and dies are analyzed. Five classes of punch
and die components are set up based on the functional
component and applied to the design of punches and dies
and the relevant holes on plates. The progressive die
design for the motor core of house appliance is employed
as a practical example to demonstrate the effectiveness of
the design tool. By establishing the components of
punches and dies that contain the knowledge of related
holes on plates, holes on plates for mounting, the
punches and dies are generated and inserted into the
progressive die assembly automatically. Also the engi-
neering drawing of punches and dies are obtained
quickly. Thus, the design quality of the progressive die
is improved and the integrity is ensured.
The proposed design tool is only applicable to the design
of punches and dies for punching and blanking, but the
method of functional component can be utilized extensively
in the design of typical components for press tools. In
addition, the theory of knowledge engineering can be
introduced into the design of strip layout, which is our
future work.
Acknowledgments This research was sponsored by the Ningbo
Industrial Scientific Research Projects (Grant No. 2007B10003).
The authors wish to thank HJ Song, J Wang, JL Xu, XP Li, J
Yang, JT Mao, and JK Xu from Ningbo Hongda Motor Die Co.,
Ltd. for their valuable suggestions and contribution to this research
work.
852
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