Comparison of Optical Strain Analysis and Circular Grid Analysis in Sheet Metal Forming 2007-01-4282

The sheet metal forming is conventionally studied using circular grid analysis. The recent developments in image processing techniques have made more accurate prediction of forming strains possible. Optical strain analysis is difficult for shop floor quality because of the higher cost of the system. Besides, the optical strain analyzer demands certain illumination requirements. Hence, conventional circular grid analysis is preferred for formability inspection at shop floor level. This paper focuses in benchmarking the circular grid analysis technique against the optical strain analysis for an automotive component. In the current work, the results of finite element analysis of a stamping process are initially validated with more accurate optical strain analysis. Later, the validation is done separately with circular grid analysis and the results of circular grid analysis are compared against that of optical strain analysis.