Patent ID: 8251688

Claim:
An apparatus for forming a sheet of polymeric material comprising: a first mold half having a bottom wall and a first sidewall defining a first interior space, said first sidewall having a first edge; a second mold half having a top wall and a second sidewall defining a second interior space, said second wall having a second edge; said first and second halves clamping the sheet only between said first and second edges of the first and second mold halves, a vacuum mechanism for drawing the sheet into one of said first and second interior spaces, said vacuum mechanism including a plurality of controllable vacuum ports, said plurality of controllable vacuum ports are multi positionable about said mold halves for directing a vacuum source at various different angles to direct the vacuum source at specific portions of the sheet, thereby drawing a specific portion of the sheet into one of the first and second interior spaces without further contact with the first and second mold halves; and a mechanism for sensing a draw depth of the sheet within one of said first and second interior surfaces.