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Hydroforming Guide

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72 views3 pages

Hydroforming Guide

Uploaded by

Daniel
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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MILLS PRODUCTS INCORPORATED ENGINEERED WITH IMAGINATION

HYDROFORMING DESIGN
CONSIDERATIONS
Hydroforming is ideal for producing strong, lightweight parts that require
complex designs and superior aesthetics. Mills Products specializes
in thin wall tubular hydroforming, which in many cases is a cost-effective
alternative to extrusion or die casting.
The following design guide will help you take advantage
of tubular hydroforming’s benefits, including:
• High dimensional stability and design flexibility
• Class-A surface finishes in fewer operations than stamping or welding
• Simple, low-cost tooling is achievable depending on design and material requirements
• Form multiple metal parts with same tooling (as long as the two metals have
approximately the same formability parameters)
• Complex shapes, including large radius sweeps and multi-sided cross sections for
stronger, lighter vehicle unibodies
• Cross-sectional shape transitions from round to elliptical
• Variable expansions of diameters up to 35%

MATERIAL SELECTION
Hydroforming responds well to a wide variety of material types and provides excellent surface finishes
without producing burrs, stretch lines or scuffs associated with traditional forming methods.

Common Hydroforming Materials:

Cold Rolled Steel Brass


• Economical • Aesthetic appearance
• Forms well • Corrosion resistance
• Many finishing options

Stainless Steel Aluminum


• Decorative capabilities • Light weight
• High luster capabilities • Wide variety of finishes
• Corrosion resistant

Copper Titanium Alloys


• Decorative capabilities • High strength-to-weight ratio
• Corrosion resistant
• Conductive/high-heat transfer

Note - The above list in not inclusive of all material capabilities. As a custom component manufacturer, we can
work with a wide variety of materials and forming processes.

TOLERANCES
Hydroforming allows precision tolerances without springback, allowing the production of “net shape”
or highly accurate parts. The hydroforming process also produces considerably less waste than most
forming processes. The result is cost-effective production of everything from prototypes to large
production runs.

Hydroforming is typically used when condensing multi-part assemblies into single, lightweight
hydroformed parts. Our capabilities include hydroforming machines capable of up to 1,000 tons, bed
sizes up to 120” X 60” and maximum capacities of 30,000 PSI.

Note - Tolerances are not necessarily limited by current hydroforming machine capabilities. We have built
machines in-house to fulfill a part need, including designing and building custom cold saws to fit the
specifications of some our earliest hydroformed parts.

(615) 661 6570 WWW.MILLSPRODUCTS.COM


MILLS PRODUCTS
DESIGN PARAMETERS
Design parameters are part specific. Each part has to be analyzed independently by our team
of engineers and hydroforming experts before determining applicable parameters.

Note - The following “maximums” may be affected by other design considerations, especially if expansion
or shape change is radical.

I. LENGTH: Max is approximately 40”


II. DIAMETER: Max is approximately 5”
III. PART THICKNESS: Max is <.080”
IV. BENDING: Radius should be >1.5 times the diameter of the beginning tube diameter
V. SQUEEZING: The cross section of a finished part cannot be less than the starting diameter of the tube
VI. EXPANSION: Largely dependent on material and location of the expanded area of the part
Note - A part can be expanded more on the ends than in the middle. Expansion rates of up to 50% can be
achieved 5 to 8 times the beginning diameter of the tube from the end of the part, whereas the expansion
in the middle may be limited to 20% or less

TOOLING CONSIDERATIONS
Hydroforming tooling is often 50% less expensive to produce than matched die tooling. However, tooling
cost reductions are ultimately dependent on design requirements.

Tooling Considerations Include:


I. SHAPE: The more complex the shape or features, as well as the size of the tool has an impact on cost.
Tool cost for a simple non end-fed part may be as little as $8,000-$10,000, whereas a large end-fed
tool could reach $100,000 or more
II. SURFACE FINISH: Most tools have to have a good quality surface finish to minimize the effects of
friction, so this has little impact on costs
III. HARDNESS: Most end-fed tools have a cutting edge hardness of Rc of 55-60 (so that wear is
minimized). Non end-fed tools are typically flame hardened to a lesser Rc and are more cost-effective
to manufacture - both because of heat treat methods and material content

Contact a Mills Products design engineer to discuss your specific application requirements.

(615) 661 6570 WWW.MILLSPRODUCTS.COM


MILLS PRODUCTS

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