Evaluate demoldability
Visualize draft angles, cavity assignment, and undercuts.
Tool and Mold Making
CAD analysis for tool and mold makers
intuitive & practical 3D without CAD expertise
affordable & universal many 3D/2D interfaces
Why use 3D-Tool in tool and mold making?
In tool and mold making, it must be clear at an early stage whether a part can be demolded, where undercuts are located and which wall thicknesses are critical. With 3D-Tool, you check these points directly on the supplied CAD model, measure relevant geometry and compare new customer revisions with the model already assessed. The source geometry remains unchanged.
Check critical walls
Identify areas with unusual wall thicknesses in injection-molded and cast parts.
Compare model revisions
Quickly find changed areas between two customer revisions and reassess them selectively.
Document results
Record measurements, annotations, and analysis results for engineering, costing, and manufacturing.
CAD viewer and analysis software for tool and mold making
3D-Tool supports injection mold making, stamping and forming toolmaking, fixture design, foundries, and model making when incoming CAD data needs to be checked. Native CAD files and common exchange formats such as STEP can be opened without the original CAD system.
On the model, you inspect parts, molds, and tooling data, check dimensions, and analyze draft angles, wall thicknesses, and undercuts. You need this information before you define parting lines, slides, inserts, or machining strategies.
Measurements and analysis results can be documented for quotations, design reviews, and coordination with customers.
Inspect parts, molds, and tooling data
Before a mold or tool is designed, demoldability, wall thicknesses, undercuts, and relevant part dimensions must be assessed. For a new customer revision, changes from the model already evaluated must also be identified quickly.
- Injection mold making: Check parts for demoldability, wall thicknesses, and undercuts.
- Stamping and forming toolmaking: Inspect forming geometries, radii, clearances, and critical part areas.
- Fixture design: Measure connection dimensions, installation spaces, and clamping areas.
- Costing and project management: Use dimensions, model information, and changed customer revisions as a basis for tooling concepts and effort estimates.
Functions for feasibility checks
A feasibility assessment primarily requires checking demoldability, wall thicknesses, and changes from the previous model revision. Tooling analysis, wall thickness analysis, model comparison, and measurement functions support these checks.
- Tooling analysis: Visualize draft angles, cavity assignment, undercuts, and projected area.
- Wall thickness analysis: Calculate wall thicknesses and display the results as a heat map on the model.
- Model comparison: Highlight differences between two model revisions in color and selectively inspect added or removed material.
- Measurements and sections: Inspect distances, radii, angles, and internal geometry.
- Open and convert CAD data: Open supported native CAD data without the original CAD system and convert it with 3D-Tool Premium when needed.
Practical example: Wall thickness inspection of an injection-molded part
For a quotation request or manufacturing review, a plastic housing from Creo is passed to the mold maker or manufacturer. Before preparing a quotation, they check for critical wall thicknesses, material buildup, or abrupt changes in wall thickness that could affect the injection molding process.
The model is analyzed using wall thickness analysis in 3D-Tool Premium V17. The sphere method determines local wall thickness using multiple rays and is particularly useful for detecting thick-walled areas and substantial geometry transitions.
The results are color-coded directly on the model. In this example, values range from 0.03 mm to 3.41 mm. This makes it easy to locate anomalies at ribs, bosses, or transitions. The histogram also shows which wall thicknesses dominate the part and whether values cluster in critical thickness ranges.
Result: Potentially problematic areas can be identified during a quotation request, quotation, or manufacturing review and discussed with the customer before mold making or production approval.
Resolve critical geometries before detailed design
Critical geometries should be resolved before parting lines, inserts, or slides are defined and detailed design begins.
- Identify demolding problems earlier: Tooling analysis makes critical draft angles and undercuts visible directly on the model.
- Reassess changes selectively: Model comparison shows which areas of a new customer revision have actually changed.
- Estimate tooling effort more accurately: Draft angles, undercuts, projected area, radii, and other geometry data can be considered during concept development and costing.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Can 3D-Tool detect undercuts and insufficient draft angles?
Yes. Tooling analysis shows draft angles, cavity assignment, and areas that cannot be demolded, including undercuts.
Can wall thicknesses be checked without a CAD system?
Yes. 3D-Tool calculates wall thicknesses in supported 3D models and displays the results as a heat map directly on the part.
How does model comparison help with a new customer revision?
3D-Tool compares two model revisions and highlights added, removed, and changed geometry in color. That way, you only need to reassess the areas actually affected.
Does 3D-Tool modify the supplied customer model?
No. 3D-Tool does not change the source geometry through design edits. You can view, measure, analyze, and document the model.
Can tool and mold makers test their own CAD files?
Yes. 3D-Tool can be tested free for 14 days with all interfaces and functions. Your own test data can also be used.