The objective of this paper is to analyze the belt punching process with the use of a single cutting edge and discuss the influence of geometrical features of the piercing punch on the perforation force. Two basic shapes of the piercing punch with a single cutting edge were tested: tools with the blade pointing inside or pointing outside. The analytical models of the stress distribution in the shearing cross sections were derived for both punches. The presented model, along with the series of empirical tests and Coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian simulation, was used for finding the effective geometry of the piercing punch with a single cutting edge for the belt perforation. The geometrical parameters taken into consideration for the tool optimization were the following: angle of the blade, thickness of the wall and diameter of the piercing punch cutting edge. The obtained results show that changing these parameters has a significant influence on the perforation force necessary to execute the machining process and affects the quality of the holes in the perforated belts. The most important geometrical features of the hollow sharpened punch are the angle and the direction of the blade, which change the force distribution and, as a result, the mechanics of the process.
Keywords: belt perforation; finite element method; modeling and simulation; multilayer polymer composite belt; piercing punch; punching; tool optimization.