Mold Fatigue and Lifecycle Prediction

Injection mold designers and mold makers are facing increasing challenges due to newly developed molding technologies such as rapid heating and cooling molding (RHCM) or rapid temperature cycle (RTC), as the mold lifecycles could be shorter or uncertain. Even for traditional mold design and making, the lifecycle is typically based on experiences only. We have developed a new tool for mold fatigue analysis. It analyzes the progressive and localized structural damage that causes mold failure due to cyclic loading during the injection molding process. In this class, we will present the complete simulation sequence: transient thermal analysis, mold filling analysis, core-shift analysis, clamping influence, mold stress analysis, and eventually fatigue analysis. This sequence is automated in Autodesk® Simulation Moldflow® Insight software to identify where mold damage could happen first and how many cycles a mold will last.