Mold Design Flashcards

In SOLIDWORKS Draft Analysis, what does a GREEN color on a face typically indicate?

Answer: The face has positive draft and is properly angled for mold release

Green faces in Draft Analysis indicate positive draft, meaning the face is angled in the correct direction relative to the pull direction for proper mold release.

What is the purpose of side cores (slides) in injection mold design?

Answer: To form undercut features that cannot be released in the primary pull direction

Side cores (slides) move laterally as the mold opens to form undercut features — such as side holes or recesses — that would otherwise prevent part ejection in the main pull direction.

Which SOLIDWORKS Mold Tools feature generates the surface that divides the mold workpiece into core and cavity halves?

Answer: Parting Surface

The Parting Surface extends outward from the parting line edges to form the dividing surface used by the Tooling Split to separate the mold block into core and cavity bodies.

What does Undercut Detection in SOLIDWORKS identify on a molded part?

Answer: Areas of geometry that cannot be released in the specified pull direction

Undercut Detection highlights geometry that would be mechanically trapped by the mold when opening in the pull direction, indicating where side cores or special tooling is needed.

When applying the Scale feature for mold shrinkage, what does the origin point control?

Answer: The center point from which the part geometry expands uniformly

The scale origin determines the fixed reference point from which the part geometry grows uniformly to compensate for material shrinkage, typically set to the part origin.

What does a RED color on a face in SOLIDWORKS Draft Analysis indicate?

Answer: The face has negative draft and will resist mold release

Red faces in Draft Analysis indicate negative draft — the face is angled in the wrong direction relative to the pull direction and will prevent the part from releasing cleanly.

After performing a Tooling Split in SOLIDWORKS, the resulting core and cavity bodies are stored in which type of file?

Answer: A multi-body part file (.sldprt) with multiple solid bodies

The Tooling Split creates multiple solid bodies within a single SOLIDWORKS part file; the bodies can later be saved as separate files using the 'Save Bodies' feature.