Experimental and finite element analysis of the shear cutting process of electrical steel sheets under various process conditions

Abstract

Almost every electrical machine consists of the stator and rotor cores, which are made of stacked non-oriented electric steel sheets. Punching and blanking are the two commonly used shear cutting operations for manufacturing electrical machine components. The presented research was aimed to evaluate the shear cutting process of two grades of electrical steel sheets. The shear cutting process causes the formation of residual stresses in the cut segments from the non-oriented electric sheet metal, resulting in increased iron losses. Numerical modeling and experimental research were used to investigate the influence of cutting clearance as well as blunt cutting edge of the shear cutting tool on the residual stresses induced by shear cutting under different shear cutting parameters. The data derived from experiments were applied in finite element analysis of the shear cutting part in the shape of a toroid. Comparison between the results of the experiments and the FE simulations showed that the shear cutting process can be accurately predicted.