Straightening machine is widely used for improving the quality of the defective mild steel plates.In general,the capacity of straightening machine is affected by material properties,the initial shape of the incoming plate and the plastic ratio.The mechanics model describing the capacity of the machine was developed.The deviation of the straightening capacity curves was studied.Then,the presented model was evaluated by comparative study to filed production data.Finally,the influences of overstretch,straightening speed,strengthening coefficient,elastic modulus,width of the plate on the straightening capacity were studied.It is convenient to determine whether the plate can be straightened or not by a series of straightening capacity curves.The straightening speed,width of the plate and elastic modulus of the material are more sensitive to the straightening capacity than the strengthening coefficient.