The Future of Shoes
Europe’s largest sportswear manufacturer – Adidas – has dabbled into 3D printing for some time, yet now, it’s got plans to not just design. It came out with its latest sneakers – the Futurecraft 4D – created in partnership with a Silicon Valley firm, Carbon. Carbon, a 3D printing startup, used a technology called digital light synthesis. Its programmable liquid resin platform uses light to create the shape of the sole, then heat to set it, creating a print from scratch. Before arriving at the final design, about 50 different lattices were tried.
Carbon claims that their method, from design to product is faster and more adaptable than traditional additive printing, the materials are more robust and flexible, and best of all – can make mass-production possible. The company says it currently takes an hour and a half to print a sole, but with more funding it can get down to as little as 20 minutes per sole in due time.
Futurecraft 4D was launched in April this year with just 500 initially, about 5,000 by fall, and an estimated 100,000 estimated to hit stores by 2018. Hence, you will not find too many of these around. The price is also geared to be high-end. Adidas aims the shoes to be more personalized and shaped to an individual’s weight and gait.
Mass production of these 3D printed shoes will be a major push of 3D-printing technology into the mass consumer market. And Adidas sells 350 million pairs of standard shoes annually. While other shoe companies, including Nike, Under Armour, and New Balance, have been experimenting with 3D printing, they have only produced prototype shoes and soles geared for athletes they sponsor.
Got an Idea for a Shoe in Seattle?
Be imaginative and get down to us in Seattle, your 3D printing company. And who knows, you might just break boundaries as well, prototyping at least your future solemate.
