Reducing Cycle Time Using Conformal Cooling

Overview

Cooling time drives the over cycle time of manufacturing for the plastic industry. By reducing the cooling time, this reduces the cost to manufacture plastic products. The use of conformally cooled channels, made in using additive manufacturing direct metal laser sintering (DMLS). Conformal cooling channels follow the perimeter of the part instead of the direct paths of conventual cooling.

Objectives

The Plastek Group tasked us with reducing the overall cycle time by a minimum of five percent. This five percent reduction was considered the minimal needed to offset the cost of implanting the design in production.

Approach

· Extensive research on conformal cooling channels layouts and cross section shapes

· Four unique channel designs were formulated and refined to simulation quality

· Complete Moldflow analysis for each channel design compared to the original simple circuit

· Hexagonal layout design selected from comprehensive Moldflow results

· Hexagonal layout redesigned to increase printability for the DMLS process

· New core manufactured with internal hexagonal layout

· Base line was established with the original core

· Parts were made using the DMLS core.

· Over cycle time and for the cores were compared

· Dimensional stability was compared

· Hot spot temperatures were compared

Outcomes

The use of the DMLS hexagonal core led to a reduction in the cycle time by 28%:

· This would result in an economic boon for Plastek if implemented

· Hot spot temperatures were reduced by 3°C