Prediction of wrinkle tendencies in explicit sheet metal-forming simulations

In large-scale numerical simulations of sheet metal-forming processes there is a need for assessing wrinkle formation tendencies at early stages of the computations. An algorithmic procedure for early prediction of wrinkles is presented, that makes use of the continuum mechanical behaviour of elastoplastic structures near buckling. The procedure has been implemented into an explicit finite element code and the performance is demonstrated on some example problems. (C) 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.