Forming plastic shields on a reconfigurable tooling system

State of the art in producing 3-dimensional formed plastic shields is the use of mould blocks that are milled on machining centers. This paper describes the replacement of traditional mould blocks through a novel automated reusable mould and tooling system, providing good forming results and low investment costs. The reconfigurable tooling system replaces commonly used mould blocks. Two major issues will be adressed. The first target is to find principles for low tooling costs, while the second target focuses on the improvement of the forming process suitable for the system. Therefore the system will be applicable for a broad range of products.