Characterization of the Mechanical Properties of Selectively Embossed Sheet Metal Materials Under Multi-Axial Loads

Abstract

The application of embossed structures close to the sheet surface allows for work hardening to be introduced into sheet metal materials, leading to an improvement in their mechanical properties. So far, this was demonstrated in previous research work via tensile tests with differently embossed dual-phase steel specimens. Since tensile tests only reproduce uniaxial loading of the sheet metal material, no conclusions can yet be drawn about the property modification that can be achieved by near-surface embossing concerning real-life, multi-axial loading scenarios. To get deeper knowledge about the deformation behaviour of embossed components, it is important to consider multi-axial load cases. In the investigations reported in this paper, a multi-axial load case was realized by testing embossed bending specimens of DP600 and DP800 using a three-point bending device. The tests showed an overall improvement in the maximum bending force needed for the three-point bending test due to embossing of the materials investigated. Further, the tests indicated that lower-strength materials get more influenced by embossing than higher-strength materials. By simulating the process of embossing the bending specimens and the subsequent three-point bending test, an even deeper understanding of the material property modification could be generated.