3D Printing Custom Insoles Fast

The footwear industry has embraced 3D printing enthusiastically, with companies printing custom insoles and even entire shoes using the technology. High-resolution 3D scans of a customer's feet can help manufacturers create products that conform exactly to an individual's arches.

However, the scanning and printing parts of the insole creation process are typically separated because of the length of time needed to actually print the final product. iMcustom has developed a solution for use in doctor's offices and retail locations that combines scanning and printing so that customers can print insoles in just two hours, the company says.

Customers put their feet on iMcustom's polymer gel scanner (GelSight, which was developed with MIT). The scanner outputs a 3D viewer link that visualizes pressure points and helps identify alignment problems. The customer receives an e-mail with all of the information, and can then use the information to make a purchase. The complete insole file is used to print the final product in the store using EVA elastomeric polymer. Customers can also view their print remotely using a live webcam.

"iMcustom has created a first-of-its-kind system that is quite frankly a game changer for our industry — a process that used to take weeks or sometimes months to produce custom fit insoles has now been reduced to potentially an hour or two, courtesy of our dynamic 3D scanner and 3D printing system," said Glen Hinshaw, CEO and founder of iMcustom.

The company claims its modular Print Pod system can reduce costs and help customers scale quickly. iMcustom also developed model slicing techniques and material composition along with proprietary hardware that the company claims can reduce print times under 90 minutes per pair.

You can read more about printed insoles here. Under Armour also released a line of 3D-printed shoes earlier this month.

You can see the system in action in the video below.

Source: iMcustom