Filaments Archives - 3DSHOES.COM

Voxeljet Coral Runner Shoe

R_Shoes — Fri, 29 Jan 2021 19:32:56 +0000

Voxeljet, a company I have mentioned in the past, is producing footwear with the help of AM materials and systems. Their newest product is the Coral Runner which is a printed sneaker made of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU). Voxeljet’s plan is for their shoe to help with three challenges the shoe industry is facing. Individualization, where customers share the value of customized shoes that almost perfectly fit their needs. Sustainability, with the market demanding more easily recyclable materials. And lastly, automation, where small quantities may be affordable and effectively produced. The Coral Runner emphasizes innovation and customizability. The shoe’s inspiration came from coral, which builds itself through additive sedimentation. The advantage of 3D printed shoes is both on-demand manufacturing, and the one-to-one transfer of the digital model to a real object.

Choosing TPU to use as the material made sense, because it can be very soft and elastic, or very hard and durable. Specific build areas may be dyed more deeply by specifically controlling the volume of the absorber into the powder bed. By using industrial inkjet print heads, it is thus possible to print different grey scales within one layer, establishing different properties in each layer. Voxeljet is working to combine the customizability of older forms of shoe production with the mass production models of twentieth-century consumerism.

Original Article: https://www.3dprintingmedia.network/a-cobbler-in-the-machine-voxeljets-coral-runner/

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Impact F1 Flip Flops

R_Shoes — Tue, 01 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Impact Footwear is introducing new features with next-gen 3D printed flips flops they are calling the Impact F1. As a small yet versatile product, flip-flops have emerged as a potential candidate for the use of 3D printing as a means for mass customized production. For 3D printing to make sense, flip flops needed to expand on the complexity of geometry, and extreme customization. With a 3D Configurator, users can select the options they want, starting with a blank slate and proceeding through 9 different steps. The 3D printed lattices mean users can select different compression levels for the heel, arch, and toe zones. Lattice technology brings a completely different feel to footwear compared to injection molded rubber and foam. With the ability to fully change the geometry of the midsole, Impact Footwear can determine the amount of responsive cushioning provided.

Impact Footwear can create a printable shoe file in under 10 minutes while accounting for hundreds of thousands of different configurations. The Impact F1 is produced using selective laser sintering technology, although it is not clarified whether the material used is the common nylon 12 or a more flexible TPU. The material is stronger, smoother, watertight, and easier to clean. The company claims to be able to reuse some of the thermoplastic material from worn out flips flops to produce other parts. The Impact F1 will be available soon, but you can currently check out the online configuration.

Original Article: https://www.3dprintingmedia.network/impact-f1-what-next-gen-parametric-3d-printed-flip-flops-look-like/

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Custom Shoes For Those In Need

R_Shoes — Sat, 28 Nov 2020 21:00:00 +0000

Graphic design graduate and artist Mikea Hugley has an idea with Makers For Humankind, which helped her win a competition this winter. Her initial plan was to give comfort to the less fortunate, but with COVID-19 she realized essential workers can also benefit from her innovation. Makers For Humankind’s shoe kits feature multiple pieces, a weatherproof sock, and interchangeable straps and screws for different looks. Hugley’s venture into footwear and design started with hand-drawn sketches evolving into 3D printed prototypes made at the OpenWorks maker space in Greenmount. Each product is made of plastic filament and comes with varying textures for flexibility, durability, and comfortability.

Hugley is now developing a business plan as part of the inaugural AddVenture Pre-Accelerator Cohort with Innov8 Maryland, a development nonprofit. She dreams of eventually having her shoes recognized at art museums. For the time being, Mikea plans to have the shoes available for purchase online and in catalogs by Spring 2021 and give them away to the homeless through mission-aligned organizations.

Original Article: https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/artsentertainment/makers-for-humankind-custom-footwear-those-in-need/

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Piezoelectric Sensors And 3D Printing

R_Shoes — Tue, 07 Aug 2018 01:36:00 +0000

Sensors track many parts of our lives, especially when it comes to physical activity. Sensors even watch the environment and road conditions. This information helps drones fly and even cars and trains to run independently. Currently, the sensors are separate devices from the sensed components, which causes design limitations. Imagine, however, if smart sensing materials featured a structural component. Researchers at Polytechnique Montreal are shooting for the goal of 3D printing multi-material parts that are embedded with sensors, which combine structural and functional materials. They 3D printed a piezoelectric sensor on a plastic wing to study its pulsating response.

The materials generate charges from being deformed and serve as self-powered. By using a coextrusion technique they were able to 3D print the sensors in a single step. These sensors were put directly on a miniature wing to monitor its flapping motion to detect changes in its vicinity. The filaments were also used as smart filaments woven into fabrics to tell the difference between respiration cycles and limb movements. Although these sensors were used for drones they open a path towards multiple uses in the near future. An example would be 3D printed smart running shoes, which can connect with headphones to give you feedback base on the pressure movements that are under your feet.

Original Article: https://www.advancedsciencenews.com/single-step-3d-printing-of-piezoelectric-sensors/

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3D Printed Footwear Strides

R_Shoes — Mon, 21 May 2018 22:29:00 +0000

Sportswear brands have been looking into the possibility of 3D printing high-performance footwear. Adidas set up a partnership with California-based 3D printing company Carbon to create the Futurecraft 4D footwear. The sportswear brand says it used years of running data to design the new midsole. This was made possible with a digital footwear component creation process that removes the need for traditional prototyping or molding. The method uses Carbon’s Digital Light Synthesis (DLS) process, which creates high-performance durable polymeric products. Nike has also started printing uppers as well, which were even used in this years’ London Marathon. These uppers are made using solid deposit modeling. Using this way the filament is unwound from a coil, melted, and then laid down in layers. Nike claims 3D printing allows prototypes to be created 16 times faster than other production methods.

3D fabrics are more dynamic than traditionally woven fabrics because the warp and weft fibers are connected. New Balance signed a deal back in 2017 with its Boston neighbor Formlabs to implement 3D printing on a larger scale. The companies are developing footwear materials that will be able to improve athlete’s performance. Once 3D printed soles and uppers have been created they still have to be bonded together. This is the most challenging part of 3D printed shoes, but the company is working on a method to apply adhesives to the outsole or upper via a digital printing process. Atom Lab used a variation of the fused fabrication to melt adhesive to join the sole and upper. When the open time is long enough, prior heat activation is not necessary, which saves some process steps. Much of this 3D printed shoe technology is new, but 3DShoes.com will continue to stick to it.

Original Article: http://www.rubbernews.com/article/20180518/NEWS/180519938/3d-printed-polyurethane-footwear-makes-technological-strides

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Nanodiamond 3D Filaments

R_Shoes — Mon, 26 Mar 2018 00:18:00 +0000

Nanomaterials are measured in nanometers, one of which is 100,000 times smaller than the diameter of a single human hair. Nano-sized particles can be found in nature but can also be made from carbon, graphene, minerals, and diamonds. Materials that are created on such a small scale have many applications because they can take in many unique properties. A Dutch 3D printing specialist Tiamet 3D has been working with Carbodeon to develop nanodiamond-enhanced 3D printing filaments. This is something 3DShoes.com wouldn’t mind seeing in 3D printed footwear someday. Carbodeon characterized nanodiamonds as detonation synthesized diamond nanoparticles. The company develops and supplies nanodiamonds for a variety of applications.

The new 3D printing filaments should increase the performance of 3D printed polymers. Tiamet 3D was founded years ago to take on some problems concerning desktop 3D printing. Ever since then the company has been researching and developing high functioning, high strength materials to be used for 3D printing. Nanodiamonds help improve conductivity, tensile strength, and thermal management of the base polymer. Carbodeon sells 3D printing filaments under its patented uDiamond brand. The first 3D printing filaments from the two companies will bet PLA based and will be available from both. The two will continue work around a higher performing thermoplastic.

Original Article: https://3dprint.com/206927/carbodeon-tiamet-3d-nanodiamonds/

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