Steel Rule Dies

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The vast majority of ORION production is processed with steel rule dies. This type of tooling is relatively inexpensive, flexible, and readily produced. ORION's close relationship with the finest steel rule die manufacturer in New England helps us offer quick turnaround for prototype or production tooling at a reasonable cost.

Anatomy of a Steel Rule Die

Designing for a Steel Rule Die

Innovations
We have worked closely with our die-makers to incorporate new features into dies that improve efficiencies in our selective laminating and in our material yields. We are proud that these innovations have given us an advantage over our competition in developing solutions for our customers. If you have any questions, call ORION. We offer our expertise in engineering effective material and processing combinations. A little extra thought up front saves many expensive engineering changes later.

Anatomy of a Steel Rule Die

Steel rule dies typically consist of four standard components: the die board, the rule, punches, and ejection material.

  • The die board.
    The die board is the foundation of the tool. Its function is to hold the rule and punches in place. Cutting force is transmitted directly through the rule and punches. The board is usually 3/4 to 5/8" thick maple plywood made especially for steel rule dies. (ORION has innovated the use of other board materials to improve the accuracy and material yield of many dies for special applications.) The die layout is prepared on a CAD-CAM system to incorporate the contours of the part and the construction requirements of the die. The die board is then either drilled and cut on a jig saw by an experienced craftsman, or cut by a computer-controlled laser. Tolerances on the die can be as tight as ± 0.0005".
  • The cutting rule.
    The most common cutting rule is 0.937" high by 0.028" thick with a center-bevel cutting edge. Edges can also have a side-bevel, and can be planed or ground. Thicker rule is available, as is rule of varying heights and hardnesses; there is an appropriate combination for each application.
  • The punches
    Punches also come in a variety of styles. Standard punches are round. They have bevels on the inside, the outside, or in the center. Slugs can feed through the back of the die or eject through the side of a punch that is designed for that purpose. they an have various wall thicknesses. Special punches are available in oblong, rectangular, and custom shapes. All these factors are considered when selecting the best tooling components for your material and configuration.
  • Ejection materials
    Different ejection methods assist in the easy removal of part and scrap materials from the die. Most often a dense foam is adhered to the die board between the rules. The foam is compressed above the material during cutting. When the die is released, the foam expands and separates the material from the die. Other ejection materials like springs and dense rubber sheet may also be sued. Ejection must be planned with care to allow for the proper deflection of the ejection material during cutting. Poor application of ejection material can quickly damage the rule and punches.Back to Top

Designing for a Steel Rule Die

When designing your parts, it is always important to keep in mind the impact your design has on the manufacturing process. Key points to consider are highlighted below.

  • Allow for a radius on all corners.
    A 0.030" radius generally works well. A rounded corner requires the toolmaker to put joints along straight portions of the rule, resulting in less vulnerability to cutting stresses than sharp corners. Sharp corners require the mating of two pieces of rule at a corner joint. Forces develop at the tool-material interface that tend to deform the material locally, causing a deflection in the cutting rule.
  • Holes
    As with any design, keep holes from being cut too close to the edge of the material. Try to use notches near edges, or leave a large flange around the hole. Such measures will help to avoid tearing and delamination near holes
  • Design with material and processing requirement in mind.
    Leaving default tolerances of ± 0.005" on your drawings can be expensive and cause delays. Die cut parts will not hold the same tolerances as a machined casting. The design should reflect not only the tolerances on the tool manufacturing process, but also the cutting tolerance and dimensional stability of the material. Very often the material that is cut requires a greater tolerance than the tool. For example, a material such as NOMEX® aramid paper is hygroscopic and can expand up to 2% in the direction of the grain, and up to 1% across the grain, just due to changes in ambient humidity. Thus, it would not be prudent to specify a tolerance of ± 0.010" on a 13" square NOMEX® part. Thick, soft materials often show a small distortion from the beveled edge of the steel rule die. This distortion is easily pushed aside during fitting of the part in the assembly, but indicates an out of tolerance condition when inspected with an optical comparator. It is recommended that tolerances of ± 0.020" be granted when they will not affect the fit or function of the part.
  • How the die board is cut affects tolerances.
    When the die board for a steel rule die is cut on a manual jig saw, tool tolerances are typically guaranteed to ± 0.015". It is important to remember that further tolerances are normally required to allow for deflection of the cutting rule.
  • Materials
    Because each material reacts differently to steel rule die cutting, we strongly recommend working with ORION as early in the design process as possible. This leads to a fully functional product, produced economically at a reasonable tooling cost. Back to Top

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