Injection molding is one of the most significant material processing methods for mass production of plastic products. It is widely used in various industry sectors, and its products are ubiquitous in our daily life. The settings and optimization of the injection molding process dictate the geometric precision and mechanical properties of the final products. Therefore, sensing, optimization, and control of the injection molding process have a crucial influence on product quality and have become an active research field with abundant literature. This paper defines the concept of intelligent injection molding as the integral application of these three procedures—sensing, optimization, and control. This paper reviews recent studies on methods for the detection of relevant physical variables, optimization of process parameters, and control strategies of machine variables in the molding process. Finally, conclusions are drawn to discuss future research directions and technologies, as well as algorithms worthy of being explored and developed.

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AbstractAn online and feasible clamping force measurement method is important in the injection molding process and equipment. Based on the sono-elasticity theory, anin situclamping force measurement method using ultrasonic technology is proposed in this paper. A mathematical model is established to describe the relationship between the ultrasonic propagation time, mold thickness, and clamping force. A series of experiments are performed to verify the proposed method. Experimental findings show that the measurement results of the proposed method agree well with those of the magnetic enclosed-type clamping force tester method, with difference squares less than 2 (MPa)2and errors bars less than 0.7 MPa. The ultrasonic method can be applied in molds of different thickness, injection molding machines of different clamping scales, and large-scale injection cycles. The proposed method offers advantages of being highly accurate, highly stable, simple, feasible, non-destructive, and low-cost, providing significant application prospects in the injection molding industry.

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