Modeling and Experimental Investigation of U-R Relationship of AA6061-T6 Tubes Manufactured via Free Bending Forming Process

Forming tubes with various bending radii without changing the bending dies is much easier for the 3D free bending forming (FBF) process. In the 3D-FBF process, different bending radii were realized by adapting the eccentricities of the bending dies. The accuracy of the U-R curve is crucial for the precision forming of complex bending components. In this study, the U-R relation curve of the Al alloy tube with a specific friction coefficient, fixed geometry size, clearance between tubes, and bending die was fitted first based on the forming results of AA6061-T6 tubes under different eccentricities. Second, the U-R relationship curve based on the experiment is used to propose the U-R relationship’s mathematical formula based on many hypotheses. Finally, the modified U-R mathematical formula was applied in the finite element (FE) simulation and the actual FBF experiments for the AA6061-T6 Al alloy complex shape space bending members. The U-R relationship curve’s reliability was verified by comparing the simulation and experimental results. The results obtained from the modified U-R relationship align well with the FE modeling results and can be directly applied to the bending process for the intended components.