Create a Sports Medal with Clear Acrilic Inlay

- Plastic,Craft,Prototyping,Product Design,Opensource

PRODUCT
PP
HDPE
INJECTION

Create injection-molded medals with engraved acrylic inlays. Use polypropylene (PP) and clear acrylic pieces 0.12 inches (3mm) thick.

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Table of Contents

  1. 1

    Create mold designs using 2D CAD program

    We used Adobe Illustrator to create three designs: one for the acrylic inlay, one for the logo outline, and one for the pocket to hold the inlay. Include a small extension indicator on both the pocket and acrylic inlay to ensure the correct orientation of the logo within the mold.

    Screenshot 2023-05-15 at 1.59.04 PM-1881f1079f2.png - Plastic,Craft,Prototyping,Product Design,Opensource

  2. 2

    Stack the molds in the correct order.

    Place the engraved acrylic logo inlay into the pocket mold, then position the medal outline mold on top. Insert this stack between the steel molds connected to the injection machine.

    PXL_20230515_110331627-1881f16e0f2.jpg - Plastic,Craft,Prototyping,Product Design,Opensource

  3. 3

    Inject, attach ring and ribbon

    Inject the plastic into the mold. For this example, we used gray polypropylene flakes for the medal. Remove the molded product, drill a hole, and attach a ring and a ribbon. Complete!

    PXL_20220824_104003681-1881f0c7938.jpg - Plastic,Craft,Prototyping,Product Design,Opensource

To create injection-molded medals with acrylic inlays, the following tools, software, and materials are required based on the described process:

Software

  • Adobe Illustrator (for designing acrylic inlay, logo outline, and pocket mold)

Hardware

  • Injection molding machine
  • Steel molds (for pocket, outline, and stack assembly)

Materials

  • Polypropylene (PP) flakes (gray)
  • Clear acrylic sheets (3mm thickness)
  • Metal rings (for attaching ribbons)
  • Ribbons

Tools

  • Laser engraving machine (for acrylic inlay engraving)
  • Drilling tool (for creating attachment hole)

References

Articles

Patents

Opensource Designs

Company Pages