JP2007105762A - Method for expanding end part of metallic tube - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method of expanding an end part of a metallic tube by which fracture critical expansion rate can be improved. <P>SOLUTION: In the method of expanding the end part of the metallic tube in which the end part of the metallic tube is expanded by forcing an expanding tool into the metallic tube while rotating the expanding tool 2 or the metallic tube 1, by using the expanding tool which has a length part, in the axial direction, the orthogonal cross section in the axial direction of which is a un-circular shape, bending/unbending strain of 2-10% is added at least once in the circumferential direction of the tube on the way of the expanding work. As the expanding tool, one on which a helical groove 3 for supplying a lubricant to the surface of the tool is provided is preferable. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for expanding a metal tube end.

Expanding (constant diameter expansion) and conical mouth expansion (pushing) have been conventionally performed as methods for expanding a metal tube end (for example, see Non-Patent Document 1). These are all expanded by pushing into a metal tube while rotating a tube expansion tool having a truncated cone-shaped taper portion. In some cases, instead of rotating the tube expanding tool, the tube expanding tool is pushed into the metal tube while rotating the metal tube.
Kitazawa: Plasticity and processing (Journal of the Japan Society for Technology of Plasticity) Volume 30 Issue 345 (1989-10) pp. 1395–1402

  In the conventional method described above, particularly high strength steel pipes with low ductility are difficult to expand in a range where the expansion rate is relatively large, and there is a concern that the degree of freedom of expansion is low. Then, an object of this invention is to provide the pipe expansion processing method of a metal pipe end part which can improve a fracture limit pipe expansion rate.

The inventors of the present invention have intensively studied to achieve the above object, and as a result, an appropriate amount of bending / unbending strain is applied in the pipe circumferential direction in the course of pipe expansion processing, thereby reducing the fracture limit pipe expansion ratio. The idea of improving was obtained and the present invention was made.
That is, the present invention provides a method for expanding a metal tube end by pushing the tube expansion tool into the metal tube while rotating the tube expansion tool or the metal tube to expand the end of the metal tube. A method for expanding a metal tube end, wherein 2 to 10% bending / unbending strain is applied at least once. Here, the tube expansion tool to be used shall have the axial direction length part in which an axial orthogonal cross section makes non-circular shape.

  The number of rotations of the tube expansion tool or the metal tube may be a number of rotations at which 2 to 10% bending / unbending strain is applied one or more times in the tube circumferential direction per 10% expansion rate. The tube expansion tool preferably has a spiral groove for supplying a lubricant to the tool surface.

  According to the present invention, by applying an appropriate amount of bending / unbending strain in the pipe circumferential direction in the course of pipe expansion, the fracture limit pipe expansion rate is improved, and the degree of freedom of pipe expansion at the end of the metal pipe is increased. It is possible to diversify combinations of metal pipe sizes that can be joined.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an example of an embodiment of the present invention, where (a) shows a constant diameter expansion tube, (b) shows a case of expansion, and (c) shows (a) and (b). The cross-sectional shapes of A cross-section, B cross-section and C cross-section are shown. In both the constant diameter expansion and the expansion, the tool 2 is expanded into the tube of the metal tube 1 while the tool (expansion tool) 2 is rotated (or the metal tube 1 is rotated). Then, each point in the length direction of the end portion of the expanded metal tube is maintained in a perfect circular shape in the axial direction from the start to the end of the processing (all of the A cross section, the B cross section, and the C cross section). It is a perfect circle).

  On the other hand, in the present invention, each point in the length direction of the end portion of the expanded metal pipe has a perfect circular shape in the axial orthogonal section at the start of processing and at the end of processing (for example, the A section and the C section are true). In the middle of processing, for example, as shown in FIG. 1C, the cross section orthogonal to the axial direction is a non-circular shape (in this example, an elliptical shape). That is, in the present invention, the cross-sectional shape of the cross section perpendicular to the axial direction in the middle of machining of the work part is set to a shape deviating from a perfect circle as described above, and the pipe is bent and bent back in the pipe circumferential direction during the pipe expansion process. The strain is applied at least once. As a result, the Bauschinger effect can be advantageously expressed and the breaking limit tube expansion rate can be improved.

However, as shown in FIG. 2, for example, if the bending / bending strain applied in the pipe circumferential direction is less than 2%, the effect of improving the fracture limit tube expansion rate is poor, whereas if it exceeds 10%, the strain becomes excessive. Since the fracture limit expansion rate is lower than that of the method, it should be added within the range of 2 to 10%.
To make the cross-sectional shape of the cross section orthogonal to the axial direction in the middle of processing the part to be processed out of the perfect circle as described above, the tool to be used is an axial length in which the cross section orthogonal to the axial direction forms a non-circular shape. It is necessary to have a part. Examples of the non-circular shape include not only the elliptical shape shown in FIG. 1 (c) but also a shape having a rounded corner of a polygon such as a rice ball shape, but 2 to 10% bending in the tube circumferential direction. -The specific shape is not particularly limited as long as it can add a bending back strain.

  Further, in the present invention, the tube expansion rate can be increased as compared with the conventional case, but in such a case, the frictional force at the time of tube expansion processing increases, and there is a possibility that defects such as seizure are likely to occur. As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the tool 2 is provided with a spiral groove (lubricating groove) 3 for supplying a lubricant to the tool surface. It is preferable to use one. The lubrication groove 3 is not shown in FIG.

In the present invention, the tube expansion rate is calculated using the following equation.
Tube expansion rate = (D-D0) / D0 x 100 (%)
Here, D0 is the outer diameter of the metal tube before tube expansion processing, and D is the outer diameter of the metal tube after tube expansion processing. In addition, when D on the right side corresponds to the outer diameter of the metal tube when the fracture occurs during the tube expansion process, the tube expansion rate on the left side corresponds to the fracture limit tube expansion rate.

  As an example, pipe expansion processing was performed under various conditions shown in Table 1 for the materials (various ERW steel pipes) shown in Table 1, and the presence or absence of breakage was investigated. The survey results are shown in Table 1. From Table 1, it can be seen that in the example of the present invention, the fracture limit tube expansion ratio is improved as compared with the conventional example and the comparative example.

尚、本実施例では、鋼管の非加工部分をクランプし、拡管工具を回転させながら鋼管内に押し込む加工様式を採用したが、拡管工具を回転させる代わりに鋼管を回転させる加工様式でも同様の効果が得られる。

In this embodiment, a non-machined portion of the steel pipe is clamped, and a processing mode in which the pipe expanding tool is rotated and pushed into the steel pipe is adopted. However, the same effect can be obtained by a processing mode in which the steel pipe is rotated instead of rotating the pipe expanding tool. Is obtained.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is the schematic which shows an example of embodiment of this invention, (a) is a constant diameter expansion pipe, (b) has shown the case of expansion, (c) is A section of (a), (b), The cross-sectional shapes of the B cross section and the C cross section are shown. It is a graph which shows an example of the relationship between the bending and unbending strain in the tube circumferential direction and the fracture limit tube expansion rate.

Explanation of symbols

1 Metal tube 2 Tool (tube expansion tool)
3 Lubricating groove (spiral groove for supplying lubricant to the tool surface)

Claims (3)

  In the tube expansion method for expanding the metal tube end by pushing the tube expansion tool into the metal tube while rotating the tube expansion tool or the metal tube, the axial length portion in which the axially orthogonal cross section forms a non-circular shape A pipe expanding method for a metal pipe end, wherein a bending / bending strain of 2 to 10% is applied at least once in the pipe circumferential direction in the course of the pipe expanding process.   The rotation speed of the pipe expansion tool or the metal pipe is the rotation speed at which a bending / bending strain of 2 to 10% is applied at least once in the pipe circumferential direction per 10% of the expansion ratio. Tube expansion processing method.   The pipe expansion tool according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the pipe expansion tool includes a spiral groove for supplying a lubricant to the tool surface.

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