Abstract:The granule medium of discreteness is supposed to be continuous (Drucker-Prager model) in the existing finite element simulation analysis on the hot granule medium pressure forming (HGMF) process, so the granule medium may produce tensile stress in the process of pressure-transferring and flowing, which does not coincide with the reality. The analysis method, discrete element and finite element (DE-FE) coupling simulation, is proposed to solve the problem. The material parameters of simulation model are obtained by the pressure-transfer performance test of granule medium and the hot uniaxial tensile test of sheet metal. The DE-FE coupling simulation platform is established by adopting Visual Basic language. The features in the process that AA7075-T6 conical parts are formed by the HGMF process are analyzed and verified by the process test. The studies show that the results of DE-FE coupling simulation coincide well with the test results, which provides a new analysis method to solve the mechanics problem in the coupling of discrete and continuum.

Key words: granule medium; aluminum alloy sheet; hot forming; finite element; discrete element