Abstract
Powder injection molding(PIM) is widely used for many parts in the field of automotives, electronics and medical industries, due to the capability of net shaping for complex 3-D geometry. Powder injection mold design for the dental scaler tip, a component of medical appliance, was presented. In comparison with conventional machining process, powder injection molding has many advantages, specially in price and dimensional stability, for molding dental scaler tip which has complex geometry. Both product design and mold design for dental scaler tip were presented. A PIM feedstock was made of stainless series(17-4PH, 316L, 440C) powder and a wax based binder. The 'rapid mold' concept was applied to manufacture the various forms and materials of dental scaler tip including vibration characteristics.