The article explores the possibility of using the authors’ three new methods of unconventional extrusion of deep hollows to be used for the manufacture of spline sleeves intended for internal toothing couplings. Two invention patents, PL206466 and PL224121, and one patent application, P.416772, were used for this purpose. Numerical computations were made in the Forge®3D program for the conceptual schemes of forming sleeves. The aim of those computations was to determine the extrusion forces and to compare them with the conventional indirect and direct extrusion methods. Then, on models based on the authors’ plastic forming schemes, numerical computations were made, from which the actual energy and force parameters were determined in the form of the relationship of extrusion force versus forming tool path. Also, the degree of fill of the passes, in which spline sleeve toothing is formed, was determined.

In the paper presents two new patented of unconventional methods author’s and sleeve-type products of extruding [PL219182, PL221425]. The extrusion methods have been developed with the aim of reducing the energy and force parameters during the plastic forming of material. Traditional methods of extruding similar products are characterized by considerably higher extrusion force magnitudes. This results in substantial limitations and problems of an engineering nature. Moreover, the proposed methods of producing bottomed and bottomless sleeves are distinguished by the capability to minimize or totally eliminate the waste. The author’s methods of extruding long bottomless sleeves, presented herein, were used for developing a method for shaping inner toothing in spline sleeves. The theoretical analysis is based on thermomechanical simulation of the possibility of applying such processes to the extrusion of spline shafts with inner toothing. Next, the obtained results were compared with analogous parameters for classical indirect extrusion. The possibility of shaping inner toothing over the entire product length according to the proposed spline sleeve plastic forming methods was also explored.

The article reports the results of a comparative analysis made for three novel unconventional gear wheel forging processes based on the authors’ patented [5,6,21] plastic forming methods developed chiefly for the purposes of extruding hollow products as well as valves and pins. These processes are distinguished by the fact that part of the tooling elements which are normally fixed during conventional forging are purposefully set in motion. This is intended to change the conditions of friction at the metal-tool contact surface and to induce additional thermal effects due to the transformation of the plastic deformation energy into thermal energy and, as a consequence, to improve the plastic flow of metal and to reduce the force parameters of the process.

Many wire products (e.g. nets) are made from galvanized material. The hot dip galvanizing process gives the possibility of applying in a respectively thick coat of zinc (also depending on the time of staying wires in the bath) which provides the protection of the product against corrosion. In the available literature there were no research concerned with the influence of hot dip galvanizing process on the mechanical properties TRIP structure steel wires. Therefore, an experiment was carried out in laboratory conditions allowing the determination of the influence of hot dip galvanizing process parameters on the mechanical properties (tensile strength UST and yield strength YS) of TRIP steel wires as well as on the amount of retained austenite in their structure. It has been stated that the hot galvanizing process of TRIP steel wires influences, proportionally to the time of staying wires in zinc bath, on their plastic properties (the increase in yield strength YS) as well as the decrease in the amount of retained austenite in their structure. Such a phenomenon can be caused by stresses responsible for rapid heating of the wire put in the zinc bath in temperature of 450°C and by the strengthening of the materials resulting from the transformation of retained austenite.

The article proposes the implementation of a novel method of plastic forming of internal toothing in flange spline sleeves. A method being the subject of Polish patent application P.416772 has been used for this purpose, which involves a combination of the scheme of the direct extrusion of a cone hollow with the die press forming of the wall to obtain a flange. The entire process takes place in a single technological sequence. The operations come one after another, so that there is no need for reheating the stock or carrying out intermediate soft annealing. The proposed method is assumed to be an alternative to the operation of press forming of internal spline sleeve toothing in a conical die [1] and to the operation of swaging on rotary swaging machines [2]. It is assumed that this method, too, is alternative to other technologies known from the literature and industrial practice, whose specifications and literature references will be indicated later on in this paper. Computer simulations of the flanged sleeve plastic forming process were performed using the commercial numerical program Forge®3D. During the numerical computations, the distributions of temperature fields were determined on the cross-section of the plastically formed product. The computations enabled also the visualization of the plastic flow of metal, especially in the toothing forming regions, and the determination of the energy and force parameters of the process.

The publication presents a novel concept of the process of plastic forming of variable longitudinal-section cylindrical products, being the subject of Patent Application P.427426 [1]. Additionally, these products are provided with a connection stub pipe. The plastic forming method proposed in the article combines many advantages and utilitarian benefits associated with the manufacturing technology itself, as well as with its further implementation. Using stock in the form of normalized bar commonly available in the metal product market as a finished product obviously reduces the process costs involved with stock preparation, i.e. casting, rolling, machining, etc. It also results in obtaining a much smaller surface area of stock contact with the tool and, as a consequence, a smaller surface of stock friction against the tool, which contributes to a reduction of force needed for the plastic forming of the product. The smaller contact surface area and the shorter time of stock contact with the cooler tool cause, above all, less intensive heat exchange and stock chilling. This has a significant effect on the plasticity of the cast material and, as a consequence, the plastic forming force. The proposed method enables also manufacturing cylinders with either a closed or open stub pipe with a regulated length and a varying section. In addition, unlike the method known from Polish Patent Specification PL 212062 [2], the proposed method does not require using a multi-tool press. The upper punch is furnished with a flange, whose job is to start the stock extruding sleeve at the next process stage.