Optical Molding

Our Dust-Free workshop equipped with 12 sets advanced injection machine from 50 to 300 Ton for optical injection molding, The most transparent material we use are PC and PMMA, part weight from 0.05 gram to 0.5KG. Our Products include LED Lighting, imaging optics, wide-angle lens; magnifier; Oculus Rift,3d glasses, optics lens of Aspheric and Spherical ; light guides, head up display for auto;

In serial production of precision plastic optics, the GPT Optics offers Plastic optics with high accuracy in the weight range of a few tenths of a gram to thick-walled components are realized through the injection moulding process.

The injection-compression moulding process is a modification of the injection moulding process to produce thin-walled extensive plastic optics, micro structures and low-stress components of plastics.

Our fully air-conditioned production halls are equipped with clean room conditions. These high quality requirements must be met for downstream optical coating processes. Machines with clamping forces from 50 kN to 200 kN are available in our series production.

Robots, conveyor belts, tool storage and palletizing systems enable automated and therefore cost-effective serial production of plastic optics. High volumes of up to several million components per year, but also small batches of a few thousand plastic optics can be realized in case of our flexible production planning.

Optical molding, also known as injection molding of optical components, is a manufacturing process used to produce high-precision optical elements such as lenses, prisms, and light guides. This process involves injecting molten optical-grade material into a mold cavity under high pressure, then cooling and solidifying the material to form the desired optical shape. Here's an overview of the optical molding process:

1. **Material Selection**: Choose an optical-grade material suitable for injection molding, such as optical-grade polymers (e.g., polycarbonate, acrylic, cyclo-olefin copolymer), optical silicone elastomers, or optical-grade glass. The material should have excellent optical clarity, low birefringence, and high transmission in the desired wavelength range.

2. **Mold Design**: Design the mold cavity to match the desired optical shape and specifications of the component to be produced. Consider factors such as surface curvature, draft angles, gate locations, venting, cooling channels, and parting lines. The mold design should ensure uniform filling of the cavity and minimize defects in the final optical component.

3. **Mold Fabrication**: Fabricate the mold using precision machining techniques such as CNC milling or EDM (electrical discharge machining). The mold must be manufactured to tight tolerances to ensure accurate replication of the optical surface and dimensional stability of the final component.

4. **Injection Molding**: The injection molding process begins with heating the optical material to its melting temperature in a plasticizing unit. The molten material is then injected into the mold cavity under high pressure using an injection molding machine. The material fills the cavity and takes the shape of the mold, conforming to the optical surface profile.

5. **Cooling and Solidification**: After filling the mold cavity, the material is cooled and solidified to form the final optical component. Cooling channels within the mold help control the cooling rate and ensure uniform solidification of the material. Proper cooling is critical for minimizing shrinkage, warpage, and internal stresses in the molded part.

6. **Ejection**: Once the material has solidified, the mold opens, and the molded part is ejected from the cavity using ejector pins or other mechanisms. Care must be taken to prevent damage to the optical surface during ejection.

7. **Post-Processing**: After ejection, the molded part may undergo post-processing operations such as trimming, deburring, polishing, or coating to achieve the desired surface finish and optical properties. These post-processing steps help remove any flash, gate marks, or surface defects from the molded part.

8. **Quality Control**: Perform quality control checks on the molded parts to ensure they meet the specified optical and dimensional requirements. This may include visual inspection, dimensional measurement, surface roughness analysis, and optical testing (e.g., transmission, clarity, aberrations).

9. **Packaging and Shipping**: Once the molded parts have passed quality control, they are packaged and prepared for shipping to customers or further assembly into optical systems or devices.

Optical molding offers several advantages, including high production efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and the ability to produce complex optical shapes with minimal material waste. It is widely used in various industries, including automotive, consumer electronics, medical devices, and telecommunications, for manufacturing a wide range of optical components for diverse applications.