Algorithms for generating multi-stage molding plans for articulated assemblies

Multi-stage molding is capable of producing better-quality articulated products at a lower cost. During the multi-stage molding process, assembly operations are performed along with the molding operations. Hence, it gives rise to a new type of planning problem. It is difficult to perform the planning manually because it involves evaluating large number of combinations and solving complex geometric reasoning problems. This paper investigates the problem of generating multi-stage molding plans for articulated assemblies. We present a planning framework that allows us to utilize constraints from experimentally proven molding plans. As a part of the planning problem, we determine the molding sequence and intermediate assembly configurations. We present algorithms for all the steps in the planning problem and characterize their computational complexities. Finally, we illustrate our approach with representative examples.