Abstract: Tremendous researches on the fine molding process in certain enterprises indicate that mold chipping is one of the most common forms of mold failures and this kind of mold failure is especially difficult to detect which will result in yield decline and hindering fully automated process in high-speed production line. Here we explored the applicability of the acoustic emission based detection technology in fine mold production line. The basic theories of the generation of acoustic emission in sheet metal were introduced and the method of how to analyze the signal and the mold chipping mechanism was presented. Finally, an in-depth analysis of acoustic emission in the metal sheet stamping process was proposed, trying to validate the feasibility of the acoustic emission based detecting technology in the online mold chipping.