This book provides the reader with the ground rules for designing injection molds. It explains the basic mold principles regardless of what size and type of product is to be injection molded, whether the mold is small or large, has single or multiple cavities, and who designs or builds the mold.
Today, most molders, including many mold makers, specialize in certain areas. There are specialists for thin wall molding, screw caps, large beverage container crates, pre-forms for PET bottles, small gears, and many others. But, regardless of the size and type of the product to be injection molded, whether small or large, with single or multiple cavities, or who designs or builds the mold, the basic mold design principles are always the same. These basic design principles for good mold design are the focus of Understanding Injection Mold Design. The designer will not find elaborate drawings of existing molds, but instead he or she will learn about the many factors that must be considered when successfully designing a mold. 'I undertook to write this book essentially to explain what is really important in the design of an injection mold, so that a good mold, best suitable for the application, can be created even if there is no precedent. It is meant to be used to guide the designer to think, and to frequently ask, why, where, when, how, etc., when considering the many possible choices before settling on a final concept.' -from author Herbert Rees.
Contents: Chapter One - Introduction: Economics of Mold Design; Chapter Two - Starting New in the Mold Design Field; Chapter Three - The Basics of an Injection Molding Machine; Chapter Four - Understanding the Basics of the Injection Mold: Design Rules, The Basic Mold, Cavity and Core, The Parting Line, Runners and Gates, Projected Area and Injection Pressure, Venting, Cooling, Ejection. Shrinkage, Alignment; Chapter Five - Before Starting to Design a Mold: Information and Documentation, Start of Mold Design, Preload, Mold Materials Selection, Stack Molds, Mold Layout and Assembly Drawings; Chapter Six - Review and Follow-up; Chapter Seven - Typical Examples: Containers or Other Cup-Shaped Products, Technical Products, Mold with Fixed Cores, Mold with Floating Cores, Molds with Side Cores or Splits; Chapter Eight - Estimating Mold Costs: Need for Estimate, Precedents, No Precedents, Methods of Estimating, Mold Cost and Mold Price; Chapter Nine - Machining, Mold Materials, and Heat Treatment: Machining of Mold Components, Materials Selection, Heat Treatment; Appendix; Index