About Sheet Bend Calculator
A practical manufacturing geometry tool
Sheet Bend Calculator was created to help plan cut-and-fold manufacturing where a sheet or panel is partially cut, grooved or kerfed so that straight sections can be folded to a required shape.
The program is designed primarily around materials and fabrication methods commonly used with HDPE and polypropylene (PP), including straight folds and segmented-radius bends. The same geometric approach may also be useful for suitable woods, laminated materials and other sheet products where controlled cuts or grooves are used to create a bend.
The aim is to turn finished part dimensions into a clear manufacturing layout: straight segments, bend direction, cut depth, remaining web, cut width, segmented-radius cuts, flat pattern, cut schedule and DXF output.
How the calculator should be used
The calculator is a geometry and manufacturing-planning aid. It does not attempt to model every material property or fabrication variable.
Actual results can be affected by material grade, thickness tolerance, temperature, residual stress, groove shape, blade or cutter geometry, remaining web thickness, springback, creep, laminate construction, grain direction, heating method and the way the part is restrained during forming.
For that reason, calculated dimensions should be checked against the intended manufacturing process and, where appropriate, confirmed with a trial piece before committing expensive material or production work.
Inside, outside and segmented-radius geometry
Straight segments may be entered using inside or outside finished dimensions. Segmented bends are separate design segments and may be specified using an inside or outside radius. The program then generates the individual cut-and-fold steps needed to approximate the requested radius within the selected manufacturing limits.
Minimum cut width, remaining land, cut depth and maximum radius-cut settings are intended to help keep the generated pattern compatible with the available manufacturing process.
Drawings and dimensions
Drawing dimensions are presented in millimetres unless otherwise stated. The drawing system uses conventional ISO-style drafting conventions such as extension lines, arrowheads, centre-lines and R radius notation to make the manufacturing intent clear.
The generated flat pattern, cut schedule, SVG and DXF are working manufacturing aids. They should be reviewed before use and are not represented as independently certified engineering drawings.