Die Driver Project
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Authors
Edwards, Harrison
Franco, Adrian
Montiel, Mike
Song, Conan Alvin
Zhou, Hang
Issue Date
2013
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
The local sheet metal manufacturer, Jensen MetalTech, uses a press brake as one of its many
metal-forming tools. To produce various shapes, punches and dies must be swapped into and
out of the press brake repeatedly. Unfortunately, the tool-swapping process at Jensen
MetalTech was inefficient and dangerous. This was due to the size and weight of the tools, as
well as the method used for storing them. Some of the heavier punches and dies weigh up to
300 pounds, and are up to six feet long. This combination of weight and size creates a lifting
risk. In addition, these tools were stored in various orientations and at different heights. This
compounded the problem of lifting the tools, since the tools had to be reoriented and lifted to the
proper height to be used in the press brake. Team Die Driver was tasked with creating a system
for minimizing the risks involved in this process.
The final Die Driver system can be seen in this
figure. It consists of a rack and a positioner that
have a common interface so that the tools can be
moved from the racks to the positioner very easily.
It has friction reduction elements that hold the
punch and die at the same orientation and height
as they are used in the press brake. This allows
the tools to slide back and forth easily. This design
was mainly created in SolidoWorks with
commercial off-the-shelf component purchased to
complete the system and Finite Element Analysis
was used to determine the integrity of the design.
In addition, hand calculations proved the system to
be sturdy and resist deflection from assumed
loaded forces.
This project was an overall success, as the press
brake operation process was made safer and more efficient by the Die Driver system. The
operator can now slide the larger tools from storage to the positioner without bearing the
heaving lifting on his or her person. Because the project was an over-the-wall engineering
scenario, there were some issues with the fabrication process, as well as the alignment of
friction reduction elements. However, lessons were learned considering cost, Solidworks
drawings and designing for manufacturing and assembly for the team. Ultimately, the system
was deemed a successful prototype and will soon be in daily use at Jensen MetalTech.
Honors Program: As a result of one of the team members joining in the honors program, an
additional presentation of the Die Driver system was presented to the Honors Program staff.
Supplementary effort was applied to verify the integrity of the project, as well as its presentation
to audiences outside of the engineering field.
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In Copyright(All Rights Reserved)