Shot peen formed surface

Shot Peen Forming is a process whereby metal is shot with small balls to bend it into shape. As the formation is done without heating, the resulting metal shape stays strong and is more resistant to metal fatigue. It is a commonly used process and is how MT Aerospace shapes the dome heads of Ariane 6 rocket’s fuel tanks.

As the balls hit the metal at high speed, each impact is unpredictable. For the first time, machine learning is being used to predict how the metal will deform next, providing a fast and precise method to reach the desired shape with a tolerance of just two millimetres.