Three Development Trends in Automotive Mold Technology

First, digital mold technology has become the mainstream direction

The rapid development of digital die technology in recent years is an effective way to solve many problems faced in the development of automobile molds.

The so-called digital mold technology is the application of computer technology or computer aided technology CAX in the mold design and manufacturing process. Summing up the successful experience of computer-aided technology applied by domestic and foreign auto mold enterprises, the digital automotive mold technology mainly includes the following aspects:

(1) Design for manufacturability (DFM), that is, consider and analyze manufacturability during design to ensure the success of the process;

(2) Assist technology of mold surface design, development of intelligent surface design technology;

(3) CAE assisted analysis and simulation of the stamping process to predict and resolve possible defects and problems;

(4) replace the traditional 2D design with 3D mold structure design;

(5) The CAPP, CAM and CAT technologies are used in the manufacturing process of the molds;

(6) Dealing with the problems in the trial moulding process and stamping production under the guidance of digital technology.

Second, the mold three-dimensional design status will be consolidated

The three-dimensional design of the mold is an important part of the digital mold technology and is the basis for the integration of mold design, manufacture, and inspection. Toyota, U.S. General Motors and other companies have achieved three-dimensional design of molds and achieved good results. Some practices taken abroad in the three-dimensional design of molds are worth learning from. In addition to facilitating the realization of integrated manufacturing, the three-dimensional design of the mold has another advantage that it is easy to interfere with inspections and can perform motion interference analysis, solving a problem in two-dimensional design.

Third, the simulation CAE effect of the stamping process is more prominent

In recent years, with the rapid development of computer software and hardware, CAE simulation technology in the press forming process has played an increasingly important role. In the United States, Japan, Germany and other developed countries, CAE technology has become a necessary part of the mold design and manufacturing process. It is widely used to predict molding defects, optimize the stamping process and mold structure, improve the reliability of mold design, and reduce the test time. Many domestic automotive mold companies have also made remarkable progress in the application of CAE, and have obtained good results. The application of CAE technology can greatly save the cost of trial moulds and shorten the development cycle of stamping moulds. It has become an important means to ensure the quality of moulds. CAE technology is gradually changing the mold design from experience design to scientific design.