Sheet Metal Enhancements

Minimum Bend Radius Thresholds Relaxed

In response to customer feedback, some design guidance severity thresholds for aluminum, steel, and stainless steel were updated to be less conservative for sheet metal stock of 6 mm thickness or less. For example, in the previous release, for an aluminum part with any Bend Radius between the stock thickness and 1/10 the stock thickness, aPriori flagged a design guidance issue with severity Major. Now a Bend Radius between the stock thickness and 1/2 the stock thickness is flagged as an issue with only Minor severity. Similar adjustments were made for steel and stainless steel, although the specific threshold values (as a multiple of stock thickness) vary by material. As before, Digital Factory administrators can further adjust thresholds to match their specific manufacturing capabilities and standards (see Design Guidance Configuration).

Note: You must upgrade to Sheet Metal CMV 350 to obtain this enhancement.

Enhanced Recognition of Straight Bends with Gussets

aPriori 2026 R1 SP1 extends the Sheet Metal geometry recognition algorithms to better identify gusset features which are used to stiffen straight bend features. Gusset recognition is improved particularly when a part contains multiple gusset features. This enhancement applies to the following process groups:

  • Sheet Metal

  • Sheet Metal - Transfer Die

  • Sheet Metal - Hydroforming

  • Sheet metal - Stretch Forming

Note that, as in previous releases, the Sheet Metal process group provides options to specify how these gusset features are formed, whether simultaneously with the creation of the bend or separately, and the number of hits required. For more information, refer to the aPriori Cost Model Guide and the Bend Brake process setup option Define When Gussets Can be Formed.

Costing Enabled for Parts with “Sharp” Internal Tab Features

Sheet metal parts with internal tab features (recognized as Form GCDs whose Sub Type property has value TAB) now will be analyzed successfully even when the tab includes a sharp (0-radius) bend. Previously parts with these 0-radius tab features failed to cost with an error.

Note: You must upgrade to Sheet Metal CMV 350 to obtain this fix.