| abstract |
A continuous length or flow of a malleable or fluent material is provided to a forming apparatus which shapes the material, producing a contiguous series of smoothly blended, properly contoured portions of the desired shape. The formation of a shape relies on continuous control of shape-determining variables: instantaneous cross section of the shape in a virtual transition surface between the formable and formed material, rate-of-change of cross sectional dimensions between sequential cross sections, instantaneous angle of movement of the material at any point on the cross section in the transition surface, and rate of movement away from the transition surface of the just-stabilized portion of the shape. The material is stabilized as these shape-determining variables achieve the proper values in each portion of the material. Analyzing and modifying a computer model of a desired shape, and developing a process control datafile from the models. |