How Do You Make a Mold Design in SolidWorks?

by

Creating a mold design in SolidWorks is a crucial step in the manufacturing process. Whether you are designing a plastic injection mold or a metal casting mold, SolidWorks provides powerful tools to simplify the process. In this tutorial, we will cover the essential steps involved in creating a mold design using SolidWorks.

Step 1: Create a New Part

Before starting the mold design, you need to create a new part file in SolidWorks. To do this, follow these simple steps:

  • Click on the “File” menu.
  • Select “New” from the drop-down menu.
  • Choose “Part” and click on “OK”.

Step 2: Design the Mold Core and Cavity

To design the mold core and cavity, you can use various methods in SolidWorks. One of the commonly used methods is creating solid bodies and using Boolean operations to combine or subtract them. Here’s how you can do it:

Create Solid Bodies:

The first step is to create solid bodies for both the core and cavity. You can use features like extrude, revolve, or loft to create these bodies.

Combine or Subtract Bodies:

To form the mold core and cavity, you need to combine or subtract these solid bodies. Use Boolean operations like Combine or Subtract to achieve this.

Step 3: Add Draft Angles

Draft angles are essential for easy ejection of molded parts from the mold. Adding draft angles helps prevent undercuts that can cause difficulties during demolding. Follow these steps to add draft angles:

  1. Select the faces where you want to add draft angles.
  2. Click on the “Draft” tool in the command manager.
  3. Specify the draft angle value and direction.
  4. Click on “OK” to apply the draft angles.

Step 4: Create Parting Lines and Surfaces

The next step is to create parting lines and surfaces that separate the mold core and cavity. These parting lines ensure that the mold can be opened and closed properly. Here’s how you can create parting lines:

  1. Select the edges or faces that will define the parting line.
  2. Click on “Insert” in the command manager.
  3. Select “Parting Line” from the drop-down menu.
  4. Create sketch entities for the parting line.
  5. Create a surface using these sketch entities.

Step 5: Design Mold Inserts or Slides (if needed)

In some cases, you may need to design mold inserts or slides to create complex features or undercuts. Here’s how you can design mold inserts:

  1. Create a new part file for the insert.
  2. Create a solid body for the insert using appropriate features.
  3. Select both the mold core/cavity and insert bodies in the assembly environment.
  4. Select “Combine” from the drop-down menu.
  5. Choose the appropriate operation to combine the bodies.

Step 6: Finalize the Mold Design

Once you have completed designing the mold core, cavity, parting lines, and inserts (if needed), it’s time to finalize the mold design. This involves reviewing the design for any errors or interferences and making necessary adjustments. Additionally, you can also add features like cooling channels, ejector pins, and vents to optimize the mold design for manufacturability.

Congratulations! You have successfully created a mold design in SolidWorks. Remember to save your work regularly and consider using version control software to manage different iterations of your design.

Now that you are familiar with the essential steps involved in creating a mold design in SolidWorks, you can apply this knowledge to your own projects and explore more advanced features offered by SolidWorks to enhance your mold designs.