Experimental Formability Study of Ti6Al4V Sheet Metal using Friction Stir Heat Assisted Single Point Incremental Forming Process

Single Point Incremental Forming (SPIF) process is a novel approach of flexible sheet metal forming method in which 3D component can be allowed to form. The process is characterized by die less flexible, lower lead time and higher formability as compare to conventional stamping process. The present work involves set of experiments of 1 mm thick Ti6Al4V sheet using the friction stir SPIF process at room temperature and investigating the effect of wall angle, speed, feed and step size on formability of the sheet. The results revealed that, the maximum formability of frustum cone specimen was obtained at wall angle of 45° and wall angle is the most significant parameter. With an increase in wall angle and feed, the formability of sheet blank decreases while increases in tool rotational speed, the formability found to increase. In addition, it is also observed that, there was no significant influence of step size on formability of sheet.