A knowledge-based surrogate modeling approach for cup drawing with limited data

To predict the quality of a process outcome with given process parameters in real-time, surrogate models are often adopted. A surrogate model is a statistical model that interpolates between data points obtained either by process measurements or deterministic models of the process. However, in manufacturing processes the amount of useful data is often limited, and therefore setting up a sufficiently accurate surrogate model is challenging. The present contribution shows how to handle limited data in a surrogate modeling approach using the example of a cup drawing process. The purpose of the surrogate model is to classify the quality of the drawn cup and to predict its final geometry. These classification and regression tasks are solved via machine learning methods. The training data is sampled on a relatively wide range varying three parameters of a finite element simulation, namely sheet metal thickness, blank holder force, and friction. The geometrical features of the cup are extracted using domain knowledge. Besides this knowledge-based approach, an outlook is given for a data-driven surrogate modeling approach.