Conformal cooling

A common challenge when designing parts for injection molding is factoring in cooling rates for distinct areas within a part’s design. In order for the mold to eject the part properly, of course it must be cooled. However, with high-volume or geometrically-complex parts, certain areas of the part may cool at different rates, resulting in longer cycle times and the potential for warpage. To avoid these issues and increase the productivity of the mold, parts can be designed with integrated conformal cooling channels that will allow air to access the deeper areas within the part, providing more even cooling, reducing the cycle time and the occurrence of defects. These approaches have existed for some time, but advances in metal 3D printing has enabled new conformal cooling geometries and resulting solutions to tool makers.