In Mold Decorating of Injection Molded Parts - Esterline

Common TermsAbrasion Resistance - Ability of a printed imageto withstand wear and tear during handling andgeneral product usage.Artwork - Name given to the image to betransferred to the plastic component during thedecoration process.Carrier Film - Film material used to temporarilycarry a printed image. The carrier film doesnot become part of the finished product and isdiscarded during the cutting process.Cavity side - Term used to describe one half of aninjection mold tool. Generally this side will formthe external surface of the product and is mostoften the fixed half of the tool.Core side - Term used to describe one half of aninjection mold tool. Generally this side will formthe internal surface of the product and is mostoften the moving half of the tool.Draft Angle - Slight angle introduced onnominally vertical walls of a molded component toease the process of ejection from the mold tool.Draw Depth/Draw Height - Depth/Height towhich a decorated foil is formed (drawn) prior tocutting and molding.Dual Layer construction - See laminated filmconstruction.Ejection - The process of pushing a moldedcomponent off of the core side of a mold tool.Female Tool - Negative impression forming toolinto which a decorated film is pushed to create anFIM foil.Film - Raw material onto which the decorativeimage is printed in the FIM process. Generally thiswill be a polycarbonate type material.FIM (Film Insert Molding) - IMD process in whicha pre-decorated, pre-formed foil is placed in thecavity of a molding tool prior to resin injection.During the molding cycle, the resin and the foilfuse together.First Surface Decoration - Components in whichthe decorative image is on the outer surface.Generally such components will be liable toabrasion and may have additional lacquersapplied to protect them from this.Flow Direction - The direction of travel ofmolding resin during the injection moldingprocess.Flow line - Visible defects on moldedcomponents caused by the flow pattern of theresin during the injection process. In many casesthis feature can be masked by the presence of anIMD foil.Foil - Name given to the printed film in the IMD(FIM) process once it has been decorated, formedand cut.Form Tool - Male or female tool used to shapethe flat, decorated film into a 3D foil.Forming - The process of shaping a flat decoratedfilm into a three-dimensional format. Often thisprocess is referred to as “thermo-forming” sinceheat is generally used.Gate/Gating - The location on a mold tool wherethe resin is injected into the cavity to create thecomponent.Hardcoat - Lacquer applied to a film or foil toincrease the abrasion resistance. This can beapplied either as a sprayed coating on a 3Dcomponent or as a pre-coating of the film used inthe decoration process. Generally, hard coatingwill be an essential requirement with first surfacedecorated parts.Height to Space Ratio - Ratio used to specify therequired distance between adjacent raised areason a formed foil. Particularly important in thedesign of IMD keypads where it governs the pitchbetween adjacent keys depending on the heightof the key.