Grain Direction In Sheet Aluminum

The software determines the smallest rectangle bounding box that aligns with the grain direction to fit the flat pattern.

Grain direction in sheet aluminum. Once the crystallites are elongated they appear as the. You ll now see that your flat pattern is generated based on one edge oriented parallel to the angled edge and the other obviously perpendicular to that in drawing the rectangle. As a general rule the grain line must run perpendicular to the bend to avoid the potential for cracking or fracture. Bending with the grain gives a different result than bending against it.

Two rollers compressing the hot metal cause the polycrystalline material to elongate in the direction of rolling. You can define a grain direction to use when calculating the bounding box for sheet metal parts. Applying this to metal bending be it plate bending press braking or any other type of metal forming consideration must be given to the grain direction before any process is carried out. Where does grain direction come from.

In addition to the new bounding box sketch there is a new option in the property manager for the flat pattern feature. The grain direction is established during the metal rolling process. This has to do with the sheet grain direction. That has negligible impact on part strength.

The grain direction is in the rolling direction of the sheet as it was being manufactured. When working with aluminum plate for example you need to pay close attention to whether you are forming with longitudinal or across transverse the grain direction. Strength will be the same in all directions. The crystalline lattice structures form during the cooling of the metal from its molten state and are held together by thin layers of amorphous solid.

These grains vary in size and in orientation but are usually microscopic and directed from processing conditions. The grain direction of the metal also contributes to the amount of springback that occurs in a bending operation. By default in my testing the bounding box aligns itself with the longest straight side. 7075 is very notch sensitive.

I m sure that 7075 sheet is made the same as 6061 with grain running lengthwise. From the flat pattern properties we can select a new edge for the grain direction. Whereas bending parallel to rolling direction can lead to cracks because of destruction in grain structure. Only concern would be a rough grain can cause a stress riser if not polished out if a bending load is applied perpendicular to the grain.