Abstract: The invention relates to a forming tool for hot forming, including a plurality of tool elements resting against one another and which define a forming surface, wherein the forming surface is embodied so as to be complementary to at least one section of a formed sheet component, which is to be produced by way of hot forming, and wherein the tool elements include cooling ducts in the form of bores which extend along the forming surface. At least two of the tool elements in each case include at least one cooling duct, which branches within the tool element into at least two cooling duct branches, wherein the bore axes of the cooling duct branches, which diverge or converge, respectively, extend along the forming surface. Through this, a generic forming tool is created, which provides for a high, uniform cooling capacity across a large forming surface.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method and to a hot forming system for producing press-hardened formed components of sheet steel, comprising a furnace (8) by means of which sheet steel which is to be hot formed, can be at least partially heated to austenitization temperature, and comprising a press system (10) for hot forming and press-hardening of the sheet steel heated in the furnace. To make it possible to use available pressing capacities and to reach a high number of strokes and thus a high productivity, the invention provides for a heating device (7) to be arranged upstream of the furnace (8), by means of which the sheet steel (2) can be at least partially heated to a temperature of below the austenitization temperature, preferably to a temperature in the range of from 500 to 700° C., and for the press system (10) to be embodied in a multi-stage manner, wherein a first part (10.

Abstract: The invention relates to a forming tool for hot forming, including a plurality of tool elements resting against one another and which define a forming surface, wherein the forming surface is embodied so as to be complementary to at least one section of a formed sheet component, which is to be produced by way of hot forming, and wherein the tool elements include cooling ducts in the form of bores which extend along the forming surface. At least two of the tool elements in each case include at least one cooling duct, which branches within the tool element into at least two cooling duct branches, wherein the bore axes of the cooling duct branches which diverge or converge, respectively, extend along the forming surface. Through this, a generic forming tool is created, which provides for a high, uniform cooling capacity across a large forming surface.

Abstract: A method for producing a hardened, hot formed workpiece (2) of sheet steel, comprising at least partially heating a workpiece blank to a forming temperature in at least one furnace, introducing the heated workpiece blank into at least one drawing press, and forming the heated workpiece blank into a workpiece in the at least one drawing press. To be able to produce particularly high quantities of hardened, hot formed workpieces in a more cost-efficient manner, provision is made for introducing the formed workpiece into at least one hardening device, fixing the formed workpiece in a receiver of the hardening device which is adapted to the geometry of the formed workpiece, and at least partially hardening the formed workpiece in the receiver by means of direct heat exchange with a cooling medium.