Designing sheet metal prototypes requires attention to detail and understanding potential pitfalls. By learning from common mistakes, you can avoid costly errors and ensure your designs are functional, durable, and aesthetically pleasing. This article outlines vital design errors to watch for in custom manufacturing.
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Placing Cutouts Too Close to Bend Lines
Placing cutouts too close to bends in sheet metal design can lead to stretching or flaring of the cutout during the bending process, potentially causing fitment issues for components intended to be inserted into these openings.
To avoid this problem, designers should adhere to minimum bend rules and maintain adequate distance between cutouts and bend lines. When design constraints necessitate closer placement, implementing notches can preserve the cutout's integrity.
Selecting the Wrong Finish
The wrong finish destroys the appearance of the sheet metal prototypes and fails to protect against corrosion, wear, and environmental factors.
To avoid this error, carefully consider the part's intended use, environment, and performance requirements. Choose finishes that align with these needs - for example, powder coating for durability and vibrant appearance, bare metal finishes for specific functional requirements, or chemical conversion coatings for improved conductivity and corrosion resistance.
Always balance aesthetic desires with practical considerations like flexibility, temperature resistance, and environmental impact.
Forgetting the Thickness of the Finishing Work
Neglecting to account for the thickness, such as powder coating, is a common mistake in sheet metal design. This oversight can lead to ill-fitting components and assembly issues. When powder coating adds 0.003"-0.005" per side, cutouts may become too small for the intended parts.
To prevent this, always factor in the finish thickness when specifying dimensions. Similarly, choosing inappropriate metal thickness can compromise structural integrity, increase costs, or create manufacturing challenges. When selecting material thickness, designers should carefully consider the part's intended use, required strength, weight limitations, and manufacturing processes.
Consulting with fabricators and referring to material specifications can help ensure optimal thickness selection, balancing strength, weight, cost, and manufacturability.
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Disregarding the Features of Bend Radius
Overly tight bend radii will create weak points, leading to part failure or deformation and damaging internal components. Additionally, placing features too close to bends risks material distortion and compromises structural integrity.
To prevent these issues, always consult bend radius charts specific to your chosen material and thickness. Adhere to the recommended minimum bend radii to ensure part strength and durability. For feature placement, follow guidelines like the 4T rule, keeping holes, cutouts, and tabs at least four times the material thickness away from bend lines. This approach ensures optimal part performance and manufacturability.
Imge by Pixabay: https://www.pexels.com/zh-tw/photo/48895/
Choosing the Wrong Metal
Choosing the wrong materials for sheet metal protoptypes can cause product failures, higher costs, and reduced performance. Overlooking factors like heat resistance, corrosion, conductivity, and mechanical properties can lead to parts that fail to meet functional requirements or degrade quickly.
To avoid these problems, designers should carefully assess the intended use and material properties, considering environmental factors like heat and corrosion. For example, stainless steel is highly corrosion-resistant, making it ideal for environments exposed to chemicals or high humidity.
On the other hand, aluminum, with its excellent thermal conductivity and lightweight nature, is often better suited for applications that demand efficient heat dissipation. However, some metals may lose tensile strength when subjected to high temperatures, which can compromise the part's structural integrity over time.
No Specifying Hardware Types in the Design
Precise information on screws, nuts, bolts, and rivets is crucial to ensure the final product meets your specifications. Without this detail, manufacturers might face delays, increased costs, and potential assembly problems.
Additionally, using incompatible hardware can lead to corrosion and weaken the assembly, especially under vibration or dynamic loads. Therefore, comprehensive hardware specifications must be provided to ensure smooth production and maintain structural integrity.
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