Effect of Geometrical Factors on Torsion in Cold Roll Forming of the Lower Side Beam of a Car

Cold roll forming is a continuous metal forming process used to produce a large variety of profiles. A significant product of cold roll forming is asymmetric profiles, whose application is expanding in the construction of cars, houses, bridges, etc. Torsion is one of the common defects in the cold roll forming process of asymmetric section steel and sometimes seriously affects cold roll forming products. With the development of the economy and technology, many asymmetric cold roll-formed parts are being gradually applied to automobiles. Three-dimensional finite element analysis models of 12 stands with 700L sheet material were carried out using the professional COPRA RF and MSC MARC software, taking the lower beam of an automobile as the research object. Five geometric factors of the lower side beam were researched, and the influence rules of different geometric elements on the forming torsion were analyzed. We found that with the increase of web width, flange width, and vertical edge height and the decrease of the corner radius and strip thickness, the torsion defects of cold roll forming were improved to different degrees. The results also showed that the width of the flange has the most significant effect on torsion.