The present disclosure relates to a process and a device for the blanking of metal parts. The blanking process and device are, as such, well-known and are broadly applied in the manufacturing of metal parts, in particular for the cutting-out thereof from strip, sheet or plate shaped basic material. In the known blanking process and device at least the 2D contour of the metal part is shaped by pressing a correspondingly shaped blanking punch against and through the basic material, which basic material is clamped between a blanking die and a blank holder of the blanking device. The blanking die and the blank holder thereto define a respective cavity that is shaped to accommodate the blanking punch. An edge of the blanking die defining the contour of the cavity thereof, carves into and finally completely cuts through the basic material, as such basic material is progressively pressed into the cavity by the movement of the blanking punch relative to the blanking die.

In the known blanking process and device, many factors such as a chamfering the cutting edge of the blanking die, a clearance between an outer contour of the blanking punch and an inner contour of the blanking die defining the cavity, the pressing force exerted by the blanking punch, the thickness and mechanical properties of the basic material, etc., each have their respective influence on the blanking process result, e.g. in terms of the shape accuracy and/or surface quality of the blanked parts.

In order to increase a production rate with such known blanking process, it is conceivable to provide the blanking device with multiple blanking punches and corresponding blanking dies, i.e. with multiple blanking stations, arranged in parallel, which blanking stations are activated by a single ramp of the blanking device. In this case, several blanked parts are formed, corresponding to the number of blanking punches, with each stroke of the ramp of the blanking device. However, the dimensions of the blanking device and thus the number of blanking stations therein are limited.

The above-described blanking process and blanking device are for example used in the manufacture of individual lamina for a laminate, such as rotor and/or stator lamina stacks for electric motors, as described in the US patent number 4,738,02, or transformer core laminates. In relation to this and other known applications of blanked parts, it may be a technical desire to produce the individual blanked parts with a small thickness by using basic material of such small thickness. For example in case of the said electric motor stator or rotor stack, the electric efficiency of the electric motor is, at least to a certain extent, inversely proportional to the thickness of the basic material, i.e. of the individual rotor/stator lamina. However, in practice, a minimum required thickness applies to the basic material in the blanking process. Otherwise, the basic material may be too thin for the proper handling thereof, e.g. may deform when being supplied to the blanking device. Also, a (too) thin basic material may result in the unwanted deformation of the blanked part, such as a stretching or a local thinning thereof, by the force exerted by the blanking punch. Finally, manufacturing economics plays a limiting role as well. After all, the thinner the individual lamina is, the more lamina have to be manufactured to build a laminate stack of certain height.

The present disclosure aims to improve upon the known blanking process and blanking device in terms of the minimum thickness of the blanked parts that can be obtained therewith.

According to the present disclosure, such aim is realised with the novel process for blanking metal parts in accordance with the claim 1 hereinafter. According to the present disclosure, the blanking device is supplied with double layered basic material, i.e. basic material that comprises two individual, but preferably identical layers that are mutually stacked. Furthermore, in the blanking device, the double layered basic material is firmly clamped from both sides thereof between the blanking punch and the counter punch of the blanking device in addition to a clamping force exerted by and between the blanking die and the blank holder, to press and hold the two layers thereof together when these are moved relative to the blanking die.

Surprisingly, the surface quality and/or shape accuracy of the cut side faces of each pair of thus simultaneously produced blanked parts is high, in particular high enough not to require further mechanical processing, possibly with the exception of a deburring process for removing blanking burrs. Surprisingly also, the two layers of the layered basic material need not be interconnected or otherwise joined together to achieve such high cutting quality and/or accuracy. Thus the basic material can be simply stacked into required two layers without requiring pre-processing to for joining the two layers. On the other hand, for example when desired for other purposes such as the paired handling of the simultaneously produced blanked parts, the said two layers can be joined together prior to the novel blanking process, in particular without detriment to the said cutting quality and/or accuracy of blanked parts. Such joining together can be achieved in many ways, e.g. by applying an adhesive between the said two layers, by (resistance spot) welding the two layers or by providing these with recesses and corresponding protrusions that are mechanically interlocking.

It is noted that the use of the counter punch is known per se in blanking technology and is generally referred to as fine-blanking. However, since the production or stroke rate of the fine-blanking process is inherently slower than that of the standard blanking process, it is not considered an economically viable option for the manufacture of stator/rotor lamina. However, by stacking the basic material into two layers in accordance with the present disclosure, the production rate of the fine- blanking process is favourably doubled. Furthermore, according to another insight underlying the present disclosure, the production rate of the standard blanking process actually decreases for larger sized blanked parts. In particular, the above- mentioned limitation of the standard blanking process in terms of the minimum thickness of the basic material (to ensure the proper handling of the basic material and to avoid the deformation of the blanked part) is exacerbated as the size of the blanked part becomes larger. In practice, the production rate that is achievable with the blanking process according to the present disclosure can thus even overtake a maximum production rate of the standard blanking process depending on the size of the blanked part. In particular, when the size of the blanked part is approximated by the diameter of a (smallest) virtual circle fitted around, i.e. circumscribing the blanked part, a critical diameter Dc of 125 mm is found for such circle. At or above such critical size, the novel blanking process according to the present disclosure is typically more economical than the standard blanking process. In a more detailed analysis also the thickness T of the blanked part plays a role, in particular such that the said critical size Dc can be approximated by: Dc/T≥ 625.

The novel process for blanking metal parts in accordance with the present disclosure can favourably make use of double layered basic material, the two individual layers thereof having a thickness in the range from 0.50 mm down to 0.05 mm or less, in particular between 0.30 and 0.10 mm. In particular, the layered basic material used is preferably composed of 4 to 6 layers of between 0.1 and 0.2 mm thickness. Furthermore, the said clamping force applied between the blanking punch and the counter punch in accordance with the present disclosure preferably amounts to more than 0.5 N/mm ² , in particular has a value in the range from 0.7 to 7 N/mm ² for basic material made of steel.

In the following, the novel blanking process and blanking device according to the present disclosure are explained further by way of example embodiments and with reference to the drawing figures, whereof:

Figure 1 schematically depicts, in the form of a cross section, the known blanking station of a blanking device with basic material being inserted therein;

Figure 2 schematically illustrates the known blanking process based on the depiction of the known blanking station of figure 1 ;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a typical blanked part, being a lamina for a stack of lamina used in a rotor of an electric motor;

Figures 4A to 4F schematically illustrate a novel blanking process according to the present disclosure;

Figure 5 is a graph wherein the manufacturing speed or stroke rate of the standard and of the novel blanking process are plotted versus a size of the blanked part;

Figure 6 schematically illustrates a first embodiment of a novel blanking device that is capable of carrying out the novel blanking process according to the present disclosure;

Figure 7 schematically illustrates the novel blanking process; and whereof:

Figure 8 schematically illustrates an alternative blanking process for the purpose of comparison with that of figure 7.

Figure 1 represents a simplified cross-section of a standard blanking station 60 of the known blanking device that is used to cut-out a part from a blank, such as a strip of basic material 50. The standard blanking station 60 includes a blanking punch 30, a blank holder 70 and a blanking die 80. The blank holder 70 and the blanking die 80 each define a respective cavity 71 , resp. 81 , wherein the blanking punch 30 is contained. In figure 1 , the standard blanking station 60 is shown in an open state, wherein the blanking punch 30 is fully retracted into the blank holder 70 and wherein the blank holder 70 and the blanking die 80 are separated from one another, at least sufficiently for allowing the basic material 50 to be inserted and/or advanced there between.

In the actual blanking stroke of the blanking device that is schematically illustrated in figure 2, first the blank holder 70 and the blanking die 80 are moved towards each until the basic material 50 is held in place there between. Then, the actual cutting out from the basic material 50 of a blanked part 10 takes place by the forced movement of the blanking punch 30 relative to blanking die 80, indicated by the dashed arrow RM, such that the punch 30 pierces through the basic material 50. Such relative movement RM is effected by means of an actuator of the blanking device, such as a hydraulically or mechanically operated ramp (not shown) acting on the blanking punch 30 of the standard blanking station 60, while the blanking die 80 thereof is held firmly in place, or vice versa. In the shown arrangement of the standard blanking station 60, the blanked part 10 falls downward out of the cavity 81 of the blanking die 80.

Figure 3 provides an example of a blanked part 10 produced with the aid of the known blanking device and process in the form of a round metal disc 1 1 with a central hole 12 and a series of recesses 13 arranged along its circumference. Both the outer and the inner contour of the disc 1 1 are formed, i.e. are cut out of the basic material 50 in the known blanking process, either simultaneously in one cut, or in a number of subsequent partial cuts in subsequent blanking stations 60 that are arranged in series in direction of supply of the basic material 50 and that are simultaneously operated by the said ramp (not shown). The known blanking device may also be provided with a number of blanking stations 60 arranged in parallel, such that a number of blanked parts 10 is formed in each blanking stroke corresponding to the number of blanking stations 60 (not shown).

The particular type of disc 1 1 shown in figure 3 is used in a laminate or stack consisting of many such discs 1 1 for a rotor of an electric motor. In such rotor, the central hole 12 of the rotor discs 1 1 accommodate a shaft of the rotor and the said recesses 13 thereof accommodate conductive material, such as copper wire windings. An electrically isolating layer is typically provided between the individual rotor discs 1 1 in the stack to reduce so-called Eddy current losses, for example by coating at least one and preferably both sides of basic material 50 with electrically non-conductive layer. Typically, such coating is thermally active, such that, after blanking of the rotor or stator discs 1 1 and the subsequent assembly thereof into a rotor/stator stack, the coatings of the adjacent rotor or stator discs 1 1 in the stack can be activated by heat, i.e. cured, to mutually bond and thereby join the rotor or stator discs 1 1 to form an integral stack.

It is known that the electric efficiency of an electric motor can be improved by reducing the thickness of the individual rotor discs 1 1 , i.e. the lamina of the rotor laminate thereof, whereby Eddy current losses in particular are reduced. However, in practice, a minimum thickness applies for such discs 1 1 in terms of the manufacturability thereof. For example in this respect, the thinner the basic material 50, the more the blanked part 10, i.e. the rotor disc 1 1 , will plastically deform in the known blanking process under the influence of the force exerted by the punch 30, until the amount of deformation and/or lack of controllability thereof exceed what is acceptable for a given application of the blanked part 10.

According to the present disclosure, a further reduction of the thickness of the rotor disc 1 1 , i.e. of a blanked part 10 in general, can be achieved with the novel blanking process that is illustrated in figures 4A-4F. In the novel blanking process, a double layered basic material 51 that is composed of two, mutually stacked individual layers 50 is supplied to a blanking station 90 of the blanking device, which blanking station 90 is provided with the blanking punch 30, the blank holder 70 and the blanking die 80, as well as with a counter punch 40 that is located in the cavity 81 of the blanking die 80 on the opposite side of the blanking punch 30. This particular type of blanking/blanking station 90 using a counter punch 40 is known per se, namely as a fine-blanking/fine-blanking station 90.

In figure 4A the fine-blanking station 90 is shown in a first open state, wherein the blanking punch 30 is fully retracted into the blank holder 70, wherein the counter punch 40 is fully retracted in the blanking die 80 and wherein the blank holder 70 and the blanking die 30 are separated to allow the double layered basic material 51 to be advanced relative to the fine-blanking station 90.

In figure 4B the fine-blanking station 90 is shown after the blank holder 70 and the blanking die 30 have been moved towards each other to clamp the double layered basic material 51 between them.

In figure 4C the fine-blanking station 90 is shown after the blanking punch 30 and the counter punch 40 have been moved towards each other to also clamp the double layered basic material 51 between them.

In figures 4D and 4E the step of cutting out two blanked parts 10 from the double layered basic material 51 is illustrated. In particular in figure 4D the fine- blanking station 90 is shown during the cutting from the double layered basic material 51 of the two blanked parts 10 by the forced movement of the combination of the blanking punch 30 and the counter punch 40 relative to the blanking die 80. In figure 4E the fine-blanking station 90 is shown after the said two blanked parts 10 have been completely cut out, i.e. severed from the double layered basic material 51 , but are still held between the blanking punch 30 and the counter punch 40.

In figure 4F the fine-blanking station 90 is shown in a second open state, wherein the blanking punch 30 is fully retracted into the blank holder 70 and wherein the counter punch 40 protrudes from the blanking die 80 after pushing the two blanked parts 10 upwards out of the cavity 81 of the blanking die 80 to allow the extraction thereof from the fine-blanking station 90. After such extraction, the fine- blanking station 90 returns to its first open state shown in figure 4A etc.

Relative to standard blanking/the standard blanking station 60, the fine-blanking process/fine-blanking station 90 allows for a better surface quality and/or shape accuracy of the blanked parts 10, however, at the expense of a significantly lower stroke rate, i.e. of a reduced yield in terms of the number of blanked parts 10 that can be produced per unit of time. This significantly lower stroke rate of the fine-blanking station 90 relative to the standard blanking station 60 is a reason for the fine-blanking process previously being considered unsuitable for the economically feasible manufacture of relatively thin lamina, such as rotor and/or stator discs 1 1 for electric motors. However, according to an insight underlying the present disclosure, for larger sized blanked parts 10, the stroke rate of the standard blanking station 60 is increasingly limited by the (maximum) speed of advancement, i.e. feeding speed of the basic material 50 to the standard blanking station 60. Since the basic material 50 is intermittently advanced in cadence with the stroke rate of any blanking station 60, 90, it is subjected to acceleration and deceleration forces that are proportional to the weight of the basic material 50 and thus to the size of the blanked part 10. Therefore, at a certain, critical size of the blanked part 10, a maximum possible stroke rate becomes largely independent of the type of blanking process. Normally, such "breakeven size" of the blanked part 10 lies beyond what is typically applied in practice. However, when using the double layered basic material 51 in accordance with the present disclosure that is able to withstand higher forces, such breakeven size of the blanked part 10 assumes a practically relevant value. In fact, the number of blanked parts 10 produced per unit of time of the novel blanking process according to the present disclosure can even surpass that of the standard blanking process, at least for relatively thin parts 10 of relatively large size.

The above aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated in the graph of figure 5. In figure 5, the left vertical axis represents the stroke rate SR of a blanking station 60, 90 in terms of a number of blanking strokes per minute, the right vertical axis represents a yield Y of that blanking station 60, 90 in terms of a number of blanked parts 10 per minute and the horizontal axis represents a size of the blanked part 10 by the diameter D of a (smallest) virtual circle circumscribing it, corresponding to for instance the diameter of the rotor disc 1 1 . In figure 5 the dotted line represents a typical stroke rate SRf of the fine-blanking process and the dashed line represents a typical stroke rate SRs standard blanking process. Even though the standard blanking stroke rate SRs decreases as the size D of the blanked part 10 increases, it remains well above the fine-blanking stroke rate SRf for the larger part of the graph. However, in accordance with the present disclosure, for a given stroke rate SR, the actual yield Y of blanked parts 10 of the novel blanking process is doubled by utilizing double layered basic material 51 , as indicated in figure 5 by the solid line. In the illustrated example, the fine-blanking process becomes the better choice at a critical size Dc of the blanked part 10 of about 125 mm.

It is noted that the values plotted in the graph of figure 5 are in fact applicable for a certain thickness/thickness range of the basic material 50, 51 . In particular, the said critical size Dc of the blanked part 10 at which the fine-blanking process with doubled layered basic material 51 has a higher yield Y than the standard blanking process, decreases with decreasing thickness T of the blanked part 10. In figure 5, the arrow A indicates such decreasing critical size Dc that is also angled in the direction of a decreasing stroke rate SR, since also the stroke rate SR decreases with decreasing thickness T of the blanked part 10. According to the present disclosure, the said critical size Dc can be approximated by the equation: Dc = T ^* 625.

Another favourable feature of the novel blanking process that is apparent from figure 5 is that the horizontal part of the solid line extends to the right beyond the dashed and dotted lines. This is due to the circumstance that the double layered basic material is able to withstand higher forces than a single layer of basic material, in particular if the two individual layers thereof are joined together.

In figure 6 a novel blanking device is schematically illustrated that is arranged for and/or capable of carrying out the novel blanking process according to the present disclosure. More in particular, the novel blanking device differs from a conventional one by the provision of two coils 103 of strip-shaped, i.e. individual layers of basic material 50 instead of one, as well as a stacking device 106 for mutually aligning and stacking these two layers 50 to form the double layered basic material 51 that is supplied to the fine-blanking station 90. To this end the stacking device 106 includes one or more rollers and/or roller pairs 104, 108 that align the layers 50 to assemble the double layered basic material 51 .

Optionally, one roller pair 108 of the stacking device 106 can be arranged to press the two layers 50 together for enhancing the structural integrity of the layered basic material 51 , in particular to inhibit a mutual sliding of the individual layers 50 thereof. Further to this end, the individual layers 50 of the double layered basic material 51 can optionally be mutually connected and/or fixed together, whether by an adhesive or by any other suitable means. For example, the novel blanking device can be provided with an applicator 105 for applying the adhesive, as illustrated in figure 5. The applicator 105 is arranged to apply the adhesive to at least one of the main faces of the two layers 50 facing each other. Connecting the layers 50 of the double layered basic material 51 can make the handling of the blanked parts 10 easier, since these then effectively form a bigger, assembled work piece 14. In this case, a heating element 107 can optionally be included in the stacking device 106 for enhancing the drying and/or curing the adhesive. However, as mentioned earlier, the present novel blanking process as such does not require the two layers 50 of the double layered basic material 51 to be interconnected.

Alternatively, the double layered basic material 51 can be supplied to the fine- blanking station 90 from a stock or coil that has been preassembled from the two individual layers of basic material 50 earlier (not shown). Especially for very thin basic material this can have the advantage that the double layered basic material 51 can be assembled in a continuous process, such that the individual layers 50 are subjected to minimal handling force only, at least in comparison with the simultaneous, but separate feeding of the individual layers to the stacking device 106 and the fine-blanking station 90.

Figure 7 provides a close-up of the fine-blanking station 90 according to the present disclosure and of the contour of the cut side edge of the two blanked parts 10 obtained therewith. From these close-ups it becomes clear that the top layer of the double layered basic material 51 , i.e. the layer that is engaged by the blanking punch 30, is pierced and cut by the blanking punch 30 and that the opposite, bottom layer of the double layered basic material 51 is pierced and cut by the blanking die 80. In particular, the circumference edge of the blanking punch CEp and the circumference edge of the blanking die CEd perform the cutting of the two blanked parts 10 from the (rest of the) double layered basic material 51 . In relation to the blanking die 80 it is noted that in the conventional fine-blanking process, it is provided with a chamfered circumference edge for realizing the optimum blanking result, as is for example discussed in EP 1 677 924 A1 . However, within the context of the novel blanking process according to the present disclosure, the blanking die 80 is provided with a sharp, approximately rectangular circumference edge CEd for realizing the optimum blanking result, in particular for realizing that the two blanked parts 10 (that are formed simultaneously in one stoke of the blanking station 90) are provided with mutually corresponding dimensions and shape as best as possible. In the end, the side edges of both of the two blanked parts 10 are cut and shaped accurately, without excessive blanking rollover or blanking burr formation, as illustrated in figure 7.

Figure 8 provides a close-up of an alternative setup of the blanking process and blanking station 100 and of the contour of the cut side edge of the four blanked parts 10 obtained therewith. In particular, in figure 8, a four layered basic material 52 is applied. In this setup, the individual layers 50 of the four layered basic material 52 deform considerably, as illustrated in figure 8. In particular the four blanked parts 10 show a considerable deformation ED at their side edges. As a result, the shape of the blanked parts 10 cannot be as accurately controlled as with the two layered basic material 51 , to the extent that these are unsuitable, at least for/in certain applications thereof.

The present disclosure, in addition to the entirety of the preceding description and all details of the accompanying figures, also concerns and includes all the features of the appended set of claims. Bracketed references in the claims do not limit the scope thereof, but are merely provided as non-binding examples of the respective features. The claimed features can be applied separately in a given product or a given process, as the case may be, but it is also possible to apply any combination of two or more of such features therein.

The invention(s) represented by the present disclosure is (are) not limited to the embodiments and/or the examples that are explicitly mentioned herein, but also encompasses amendments, modifications and practical applications thereof, in particular those that lie within reach of the person skilled in the relevant art.