Patent ID: 8644979

Claim:
A method of optimizing the position of one or more heating elements within a mold for a rubber article, the steps comprising: determining a net 3-D temperature profile of a single heating element; choosing a number of heating elements n, wherein n is an integer greater than, or equal to, one; creating a number of heating element locations i as defined in two dimensions within a predetermined zone of the rubber article, wherein i is an integer greater than, or equal to, one; calculating a minimum temperature obtained within the predetermined zone by the presence of a given configuration of n heating elements using the net 3-D temperature profile of the single heating element from said step of determining the net 3-D temperature profile; repeating said step of calculating the minimum temperature for each configuration of the n heating elements available among the i heating element locations; and identifying a specific configuration of n heating elements among the i heating element locations that has a highest minimum temperature.