For traditional Chinese medicine, the feet are very important parts of the body: the nerve endings of the entire organism reside here. Each foot is different and distinctive for each person, and even the right and left are not the same. Adidas seems to have understood this concept well and has decided to use modern 3D printing technology to offer every runner the perfect shoe for their foot. The project is called Futurecraft and promises to redefining the footwear sectorwhich is globally worth USD 370 billion.
La Futurecraft 3D is a running shoe that contains a midsole that, thanks to 3D printing, is customised for each buyer. Foot shape, curvature, pressure points: the midsole traces the individual foot of the runner to perfection, creating the perfect shape and the best support for running comfortably and fast for hundreds of kilometres. For this innovative project Adidas collaborated with shoe designer Melinda Looi and with Materialiseone of the leaders in 3D printing software.
In the not too distant future, in every Adidas shop on the planet there will be a kind of treadmill on which the shopper will run for a few seconds. The machine will produce a file that will then be sent to a 3D printer. In a few minutes the customised midsole will then be printed and the shopper will be able to leave the shop wearing the perfect shoe for their feet.
Futurecraft 3D
Adidas officially unveiled its Futurecraft project just a week after Nike's Chief Operating Officer Erick Sprunk announced the Portland-based brand's plans for 3D-printed footwear during a speech at the GeekWire Summit. Within a few years, Nike plans to move from selling shoes to sale of digital files with the design of the shoes. Users can then have the file printed in a specialised shop, either as is or with modifications dictated by their personal taste.
Also in the area of shoes design The service offered by the company SOLS is worth mentioning: the user takes two photos of his or her feet, sends them via app to the company and receives a set of customised insoles at home within a few days.
3D printing is therefore also revolutionising the shoe industry, which has always been one of the most 'old economy' imaginable. We are sure that what we will be able to buy in a shoe shop 10 years from now is still hard to imagine for us humans of 2017. We can't wait to find out.
