Engineering company Fyous has announced that its high-speed mould-making technology, said to use a pin tool which can create a mould in around twenty minutes, will be introduced at the Formnext trade fair taking place on 19th-22nd November in Frankfurt, Germany.
Fyous says its PolyMorphic 28k consists of the pin tool and a forming machine that the pin tool is inserted into. A 3D CAD model of the mould is used to move the pins into position, which are apparently accurate to within 0.1mm.
Once locked into position, the company states the pins can withstand six tonnes of pressure, designed for uses such as vacuum forming, composite layup, composite bonding, workholding, and moulding polyurethane (PU) products.
The PolyMorphic moulding process takes around twenty minutes, reportedly fourteen times faster than 3D printing for an equivalent sized part. Once the pin tool has been used it can be reinserted into the forming machine to create a new mould shape with zero waste.
Fyous adds there is no requirement to store the mould, just the 3D CAD model. The pin tools are each about the size of a laptop or shoebox and can be used together to make bigger moulds for multiple applications.
The company states the technology is applicable in sectors ranging from aerospace and automotive to packaging and toys; the product has apparently demonstrated ‘significant’ cost and time savings for a dental-aligner manufacturer and medical shoemaker.
Another application is workholding for complex parts, supporting them for machining. Fyous says this can be time-consuming and difficult when using clamps and expensive using custom moulds; in this case, forming a mould to hold the part using the PolyMorphic process only needs the CAD model of the part to create the mould.
The PolyMorphic 28k will be live on the Fyous stand at Formnext with demonstrations throughout each day of the show.
Josh Shires, co-founder of Fyous, commented:
“PolyMorphic moulding is not only fast, but also has virtually zero waste, making it highly sustainable. This makes the system perfect for products that demand minor customisation and for prototyping, which can be highly costly if you go through multiple iterations.”
The new PolyMorphic 28k will be unveiled on November 19th at Fyous’ stand at Formnext, Stand 11.1, E48.
In May, Origin Materials and IMDvista formed a strategic partnership to create the ‘world’s first’ commercial-scale PET cap and closure manufacturing system, hoping to unlock design-for-recycling for bottles. The companies developed a ‘high-throughput’ production system aiming to achieve 100% recyclability for rPET bottles and improve the post-consumer recycling process.
A few months later, the European Commission approved a €5 billion German measure to help the European Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (ESMC) build and operate a ‘first-of-its-kind’ microchip manufacturing plant in Dresden. Planning to operate at full capacity by 2029, the plant plans to produce 480,000 silicone wafers annually.
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