Analysis and design of a new manufacturing process for a support shaft using the finite element method

The support shaft is a key part in the automobile industry. Its annual production quantity is usually very large. The current manufacturing process is conducted with much machining work including drilling the hollow, which results in a great waste of material. This paper gives a new manufacturing method by the implementation of extrusion processes. It can not only save much material but can also improve properties of the support shaft. The new manufacturing processes include a two-stage extrusion process. A reasonable preform shape was determined through finite element based simulation. The whole forming process is simulated and verified by the finite element method using the DEFORM™ system. The die designs of the two extrusion processes are also given. The two-stage extrusion process and related die designs were recommended to one forging company that presently manufactures the support shaft with the traditional method.