Research
University of Florida
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Non-Traditional Manufacturing Laboratory
Dr. Hitomi Greenslet
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Magnetic Field-Assisted Incremental Forming
Since March 2023
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Research Focus
My research involves the development and analysis of the magnetic field-assisted methods of incremental forming in sheet metal. The Magnetic Singe-Point Incremental Forming (M-SPIF) manufacturing method was developed in 2021 involves the deformation of a sheet metal workpiece utilizing a magnet ball as a forming tool. The sheet metal is clamped in place while the motion of the magnet ball is guided by a driving magnet attached to a programmable robot arm. The sheet metal is deformed step-by-step as the magnet ball is driven along contours in the sheet metal a certain number of times before stepping to the next contour. Currently, our research involves the development of the Magnetic Double-Sided Incremental Forming (M-DSIF) method, a derivative of M-SPIF that reduces processing time by utilizing continuous contact with the workpiece.
Processing principle [1]
Lab Setup
Responsibilities
My responsibilities for this mainly including creating and processing workpieces. To create a workpiece, I must setup and operate the FANUC robot. After a workpiece is created, it must be cast in resin, cut along its center with a bandsaw, and sanded along the cut surface. We use a ShuttlePix to photograph the cross-section of the deformed workpiece at 1mm intervals and measure the thickness along it using MATLAB. After the thickness measurements and deformation characteristics have been gathered, we analyze and compare workpieces in Excel.
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[1] Skelton D (2021) Automation strategy for magnetic field-assisted single point incremental forming. Master’s thesis, University of Florida, Gainesville.