Design For Mouldability PDF

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Designing
for mouldability
A quick-reference user guide for rapid
injection moulding for engineers and designers
2nd edition
Real Parts. Really Fast.

www.protomold.co.uk
Proto Labs, Ltd., Halesfield 8, Telford, Shropshire, TF7 4QN UK +44 (0) 1952 683047
DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY
TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding?
What is injection moulding 2
What is Rapid Injection Moulding 3
1 The hopper is loaded with the plastic stock material.
Applications of Rapid
Injection Moulding 3 2 A heated barrel is used to melt the beads into a molten form.
Wall thickness 4
Cored geometry 4 3 A screw apparatus is used to inject the polymer into a mould.
Recommended wall thickness 5
Warp 5 4 The part cools and solidifies.
Sharp corners 6
Ribs 6 5 The mould is opened and the part ejected.
Bosses 7
Draft 7
Core-cavity 8
Deep (milling) impact 8
Texture 8
Straight pull mould 9
Side actions 9
Bump off 10
Pick-outs 10
Steel core pins 10
Text 11
Tab gate 11
Self mating parts 12
Tolerance 12
Choosing a material 13
Select colours 14
Resin additives 14
Be the hero! 15
©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is rapid Applications of rapid
What is Rapid Injection Moulding 3 injection moulding? injection moulding
Rapid mould fabrication Prototypes. Refine your design with real
Injection Moulding 3
n Moulds are made from aluminium moulded parts
Wall thickness 4
n They are 3-axis CNC milled n Functional testing in product development cycle
Cored geometry 4
n Selective use of electrical discharge n Test multiple materials
Warp 5 machining (EDM) n Try multiple versions
Sharp corners 6 There are limits to complexity Bridge tooling
Ribs 6 n Number of side actions at the parting line n Production parts until production mould is ready
Bosses 7
n No internal threads
Draft 7
Low to medium-volume production
Fast real injection moulded plastic parts n 25 to thousands of parts
Core-cavity 8
n CAD to plastic as fast as 1 day
Deep (milling) impact 8 n Just-in-time parts, use your cash for
n Standard delivery 10-15 business days
Texture 8 something other than inventory
Panic situations
Side actions 9
n Production line shutdown
Bump off 10
n Crash development projects
Pick-outs 10
Steel core pins 10 Markets that use Rapid Injection Moulding
Text 11 n Medical n Consumer Products
Tab gate 11 n n
Automotive Appliance
n Electronics n Other high volume parts
Tolerance 12
Select colours 14
Resin additives 14
Be the hero! 15

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Up against the A core issue
What is Rapid Injection Moulding 3 wall (thickness) Core out parts to eliminate thick walls.
n You get the same functionality in a
The most important design requirement for
Injection Moulding 3 good moulded part.
getting good moulded parts - maintain
Wall thickness 4
constant wall thickness.
Cored geometry 4
Warp 5
Sharp corners 6 Sink
Ribs 6
Bosses 7
As designed As moulded Original geometry
Draft 7
Core-cavity 8
Texture 8
Side actions 9 Warp
Bump off 10
Pick-outs 10
Steel core pins 10
Text 11
Cored geometry
Tab gate 11
Cored geometry
Tolerance 12
Select colours 14
* Tip: Good injection moulded part design relies on a * Tip: Unnecessary thickness can throw off part dimensions,
Resin additives 14
consistent wall thickness to minimize the potential reduce strength and necessitate post-process machining.
Be the hero! 15 for warped or distorted parts.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Let’s get absolute A warped personality
Recommended absolute wall Eliminate sharp transitions which cause
thickness by resin. moulded-in stress.
Wall thickness 4
Recommended Wall
Cored geometry 4 Resin Thickness (mm)
Warp 5
ABS 1.14 - 3.50
Sharp corners 6 Acetal 0.64 - 3.05
Ribs 6
Acrylic 0.64 - 3.81
Bosses 7
Draft 7 Liquid crystal polymer 0.76 - 3.05
Design 3D structures that support themselves.
Core-cavity 8
Long-fibre reinforced plastics 1.90 - 2.54
Texture 8 Nylon 0.76 - 2.92
Polycarbonate 0.11 - 3.81
Side actions 9
Bump off 10 Polyester 0.64 - 3.17
Pick-outs 10
Polyethylene 0.76 - 5.08
Steel core pins 10
Text 11 Polyphenylene sulfide 0.51 - 4.57
Tab gate 11
Polypropylene 0.64 - 3.81
Tolerance 12 Polystyrene 0.89 - 3.81
Note: These are general guidelines, subject to part geometry
Select colours 14
and moulded construction. Large parts shouldn’t be designed
Resin additives 14 with the minimum wall thickness.
Be the hero! 15
* Tip: Protomold’s general rule for wall thickness is 0.040 - 0.140.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Get the stress out Give ‘em a good ribbing
Sharp corners weaken parts. To prevent sink, ribs should be no more
n
than 60% of the wall’s thickness.
Applications of Rapid They cause moulded-in stress from resin flow.
Injection Moulding 3 n They form a stress riser in your application.
Wall thickness 4
Cored geometry 4
Warp 5
Sharp corners 6 Bad Better
Ribs 6
Bosses 7
Draft 7
Core-cavity 8
Texture 8
Side actions 9
Bump off 10 Stress riser
Pick-outs 10
Steel core pins 10
Text 11
Tab gate 11
Tolerance 12
Select colours 14
* Tip: If Protomold asks for greater wall thickness on your 40-60%
Resin additives 14
T wall, consider increasing your T wall to compensate for this
Be the hero! 15 increased thickness to reduce the risk of sink.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Thin bosses are in Get drafted
n Don’t create thick sections with screw bosses. Draft (slope the vertical walls) as much as
n
possible — this makes it easier to eject
Applications of Rapid Thick sections can cause sink and voids
in your part. parts without drag marks or ejector punch
marks. You get better parts, faster.
Wall thickness 4
Cored geometry 4
Warp 5
Sharp corners 6
Ribs 6
Bosses 7
Draft 7
Core-cavity 8
UNDRAFTED DRAFTED
Texture 8
Side actions 9
Bump off 10
Pick-outs 10
Steel core pins 10
Text 11
Tab gate 11
Tolerance 12
Select colours 14
Resin additives 14
Be the hero! 15

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact
When you draft, use Core-Cavity instead of Draft the part as much as possible. This allows us
ribs if you can. It allows you to have constant to make deeper features for you. Draft allows us to
wall thickness rather than walls with a thick reduce tool chatter and cosmetic defects when
base. We can mill moulds with better surface milling deep walls. If you can fit it in, use 1 degree
Wall thickness 4
finish and deliver better parts faster. of draft or more. On core-cavity designs, try to use
Cored geometry 4
2 degrees or more. A rough rule of thumb is 1
degree of draft for each of the first two inches of
Warp 5
depth. From 2 to 4 inches of depth, either 3
Sharp corners 6
degrees of draft or a minimum of 1/8” thickness
Ribs 6
may be required.
Bosses 7
Draft 7
Core-cavity 8
Texture
Protomold can add bead blast texture to the
Texture 8 Deep Rib Approach Core-cavity Approach
mould for your parts. Light texture requires 3
degrees of draft minimum on vertical walls.
Side actions 9
Medium texture requires 5 degrees.
Bump off 10 * Tip: This option is faster and less expensive to manufacture.
Pick-outs 10
Steel core pins 10
Text 11
Tab gate 11
Tolerance 12
Select colours 14
Resin additives 14
Be the hero! 15

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Straight (pull) shooter Just a side action
Sliding shutoffs are your friend — these features Side actions can form undercuts on the outside of
can be made in a straight-pull mould. They do your part. Undercuts must be on or connected to the
require 3 degrees of draft, but save significant parting line. They must be in the plane of the parting
money over side actions. line. Protomold can do multiple side actions per part.
Wall thickness 4
Cored geometry 4
Warp 5
Sharp corners 6
Ribs 6
Bosses 7
Draft 7
Core-cavity 8
Texture 8
Side actions 9
Bump off 10
Pick-outs 10
Steel core pins 10
Text 11
Tab gate 11
Tolerance 12
Select colours 14
Resin additives 14
Be the hero! 15

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Bumpoff Pick-outs
A “bumpoff” is a small undercut in a part A pickout is a separate piece of metal that is
design that can be safely removed from a inserted into the mould to create an undercut. It is
straight-pull mould without the use of side ejected with the part, then removed by the
actions. Bumpoffs can be used to solve some operator and re-inserted in the mould.
Wall thickness 4
simple slight undercuts, but are sensitive to
Cored geometry 4 * Tip: Using a pickout overcomes many shape and positioning
geometry, material type, and orientation.
Recommended wall thickness 5 restrictions, but is more costly than sliding shutoffs, or
Warp 5 using a side action.
Sharp corners 6
Ribs 6 B-side
core
Bosses 7
High-aspect-ratio
Draft 7
Core-cavity 8
small diameter holes
A-side
These holes can be made with steel core pins in the
Texture 8
mould
mould. A steel pin is strong enough to handle the
cavity
stress of ejection and its surface is smooth enough
Side actions 9 to release cleanly from the part without draft. There
* Tip: Mould can be made core-cavity, allowing room for the part
Bump off 10 shouldn’t be any cosmetic effect on the resulting
to “bump-off” after the mould opens.
Pick-outs 10 part, if there is, it will be inside the hole where it
Steel core pins 10 won’t be seen.
Text 11
Tab gate 11
Tolerance 12
Select colours 14
Resin additives 14
Be the hero! 15

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Watch your penmanship Open the floodgates
Choose a sans serif font where the smallest Thin edges restrict flow and can break during gate
feature is at least .020” thick. Serif fonts trimming. We need somewhere thick to gate into
have small tails which are often too small. your part. There may be alternatives, please contact
Text that is raised above the part is better. one of our customer service engineers at
Wall thickness 4
We cannot polish around it if the text is cut +44 (0) 1952 683047
Cored geometry 4
into your part. or customerservice@protolabs.co.uk.
Warp 5 n In SolidWorks, Century Gothic
Sharp corners 6 26 point regular font and
Ribs 6 16 point bold create millable text.
Bosses 7 Thin edge
n Comic Sans MS 24 point
Draft 7 breaks at gate
also creates millable text.
Core-cavity 8
Deep (milling) impact 8 n For small text, a depth of 0.25-0.38mm
Texture 8 often works well to reduce milling cost
Straight pull mould 9 and improve ejection.
Side actions 9
Bump off 10
Pick-outs 10
Steel core pins 10
Text 11
Tab gate 11
Tolerance 12
Milling cutter must be
Select colours 14
able to get into all
Resin additives 14 features of mould.
Be the hero! 15

TABLE OF CONTENTS Self-mating parts Be tolerant

Identical parts that flip over and mate to n Protomold can hold about ±0.08mm
themselves are possible and save the cost of machining accuracy.
a second mould.
n Shrink tolerance depends mainly on part design and
Wall thickness 4 Elements include:
resin choice. It varies from 0.05mm per 25.4mm for
Cored geometry 4 n Peg and hole
stable resins like ABS and polycarbonate to
Recommended wall thickness 5 n Interlocking rim
0.65mm per 25.4mm for unstable resins like
Warp 5
n Hooks and latches
Sharp corners 6
Santoprene.
Ribs 6
n There are techniques for getting the most accuracy
Peg and hole/interlocking rim
Bosses 7
out of our process. Please contact a Customer
Draft 7
Service Engineer at +44 (0) 1952 683047 or
Core-cavity 8
customerservice@protolabs.co.uk.
Texture 8
Side actions 9
Bump off 10 Hooks and latches
Pick-outs 10
Steel core pins 10
Text 11
Tab gate 11
Tolerance 12
Select colours 14
Resin additives 14
Be the hero! 15

TABLE OF CONTENTS
It’s material
When choosing a material for your part, relevant properties might include mechanical, physical, chemical resistance,
heat, electrical, flammability, or UV resistance. Resin manufacturers, compounders and independent resin search
engines have data online. For resin links, visit www.protomold.co.uk/DesignGuidelines_ResinInformation.aspx#links
Wall thickness 4
Cored geometry 4 Commodity resins — Engineering resins — Colours —
Recommended wall thickness 5 cheap, low to medium properties. more £, higher properties. stock, semi-custom, custom.
Warp 5
Sharp corners 6
Ribs 6 Commodity resins Engineering resins
Nylon
Bosses 7 Polypropylene — Soft, tough, ABS
n Reasonable cost
Draft 7 cheap, chemical resistant n Inexpensive
n Very strong
n High Density n
Core-cavity 8 Impact Resistant
n Susceptible to shrink and warp
Deep (milling) impact 8 n Low Density n Equipment and handheld housings
– particularly glass-filled
Texture 8 Polyethylene — Soft, tough, nSusceptible to sink
n Absorbs water — dimensional
Straight pull mould 9 cheap, chemical resistant Acetal
Side actions 9 n High Density n
& property change
More expensive
Bump off 10 n n
Polycarbonate
Low Density Strong
n Moderate cost
Pick-outs 10 Polystyrene — Hard, clear, cheap, n Good lubricity and machinability
Steel core pins 10 n Very tough
brittle but can be toughened n Very sensitive to excess
Text 11 n Good dimensional accuracy
wall thickness
Tab gate 11 n Susceptible to chemical
LCP
Self mating parts 12 stress cracking, voids
n Very expensive
Tolerance 12
n Very strong
Choosing a material 13 Polyesters — PBT, PET
n Fills very thin parts
Select colours 14 PPS, PSU, PES, PEI
n Weak knit lines
Resin additives 14 Many, many others
Be the hero! 15

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Select colours
Stock colours from the resin vendor are typically black and natural. Natural might be white, beige, amber,
or some other colour. Semi-custom colours are created when colorant pellets are added to natural resins.
For available colours, visit www.protomold.co.uk/DesignGuidelines_ResinInformation.aspx#Colours.
There is no added charge for our inventory colours. They are not an exact match and may create streaks or
Wall thickness 4
swirls in parts. Custom colours match exactly to a Pantone or color chip. You work with a compounder and
Cored geometry 4
provide us the resin. This process is slower and more expensive, but produces a more accurate match.
Warp 5
Sharp corners 6 Resin additives
Long glass fibres are used like short glass
Ribs 6 (Short) glass fibres are used to strengthen a
fibres to strengthen and reduce creep, but
Bosses 7 composite and reduce creep, especially at higher
make the resin much stronger and stiffer. The
Draft 7 temperatures. They make the resin stronger, stiffer, and
downside is that they can be particularly
Core-cavity 8 more brittle. They can cause warp due to the difference
challenging to mould parts with thin walls
Deep (milling) impact 8 in cooling shrink between the resin and the fibres.
and/or long resin flows.
Texture 8
Carbon fibre is used to strengthen and/or stiffen a Aramid (Kevlar) fibres are like glass fibre only
composite and also to aid in static dissipation. It has not as strong, but less abrasive.
Side actions 9
the same limitations as glass fibres. Carbon fibre can Glass beads and mica flakes are used to
Bump off 10
make plastic very stiff. stiffen a composite and reduce warping and
Pick-outs 10
shrinkage. With high loading they can be
Steel core pins 10
Minerals such as talc and clay are often used as fillers challenging to inject.
Text 11
to reduce the cost or increase the hardness of Stainless steel fibres are used to control EMI
Tab gate 11
finished parts. Since they do not shrink as much as (electromagnetic interference) and RFI (radio
resins do when cooled, they can reduce warping. frequency interference) typically in housings
Tolerance 12
for electronic components. They are more
Choosing a material 13 PTFE (Teflon) and molybdenum disulfide are used to
conductive than Carbon fibre.
Select colours 14 make parts self lubricating in bearing applications.
Resin additives 14 UV inhibitor for outdoor applications.
Be the hero! 15 Static treatments make resins dissipate static.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Be the hero!
n Get real plastic injection moulded parts made for
your project faster than your competitors.
Injection Moulding 3 n Shave days or weeks off the prototyping cycle.
Wall thickness 4
n Save the day in a line-down situation.
Cored geometry 4
n Cut out the middle man — work with a company that
Warp 5
has sales and manufacturing on the same campus.
Sharp corners 6
Ribs 6
Bosses 7
Draft 7
Core-cavity 8
Texture 8
Side actions 9
Bump off 10
Pick-outs 10 Questions?
Steel core pins 10
Text 11 Call your Account Manager or
Tab gate 11
Self mating parts 12 a Customer Service Engineer
Tolerance 12
at +44 (0) 1952 683047.
Select colours 14
Resin additives 14
Be the hero! 15

Protomold is a service of Proto Labs, the world’s fastest source for custom CNC
machined and injection moulded parts.
We offer interactive and highly-illustrated ProtoQuote online quotations, backed up

by a streamlined manufacturing system that can ship real injection moulded parts in
as little as one business day.
www.protomold.co.uk
T: +44 (0) 1952 683047
Proto Labs, Ltd.

Halesfield 8, Telford,
Shropshire, TF7 4QN
United Kingdom
Proto Labs, Inc.

5540 Pioneer Creek Drive
Maple Plain, MN 55359
United States
Proto Labs G.K.

Yamato-Shi,
Kanagawa,
242-0008
Japan
www.protomold.co.uk

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Design For Mouldability PDF

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Print. Bind and save.

Format: Landscape Bind in presentation

Real Parts. Really Fast.

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 2

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 3

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 4

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 5

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 6

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 7

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 8

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 9

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 10

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 11

TABLE OF CONTENTS Self-mating parts Be tolerant

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 12

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 13

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 14

©2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 15

We offer interactive and highly-illustrated ProtoQuote online quotations, backed up

Proto Labs, Ltd.

Proto Labs, Inc.

Proto Labs G.K.

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