Artificial vision and augmented reality for the mold sector

Portugal is among the world’s leading mold manufacturers, particularly in the field of plastic injection molds (ranking eighth in the world and third in Europe), exporting more than 85% of its total production. The mold industry is comprised of approximately 540 companies that create around 11,000 jobs in the country. The Intelligent4DMoulds project aims to research the mold production process and develop a technologically innovative system that will include new mold manufacturing processes using computer vision and augmented reality techniques. The project is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund, the COMPETE 2020 Program, and the PORTUGAL 2020 Cooperation Agreement. According to forecasts, these techniques will reduce production costs by up to 40%, increasing the competitiveness of Portuguese companies in the domestic and international markets. Combining the potential of both technologies will make it possible to define and identify existing problems in each design and manufacturing process and assist in their resolution.