Nike has unveiled its first shoe to implement 3-D printing technology.
Called the Nike Vapor Laser Talon, the football cleat weighs only 5.6 ounces and was designed to optimize football players' performance, specifically the "zero step" or speed with which they start running. This helps build the player's overall momentum.
However, it was not possible to create this type of shoe sole through traditional manufacturing. So Nike opted to use Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) technology to melt the shoe materials into the desired shape, creating a 3-D printed sole. This process allowed the shoe's design to be tested far more quickly: something called "rapid prototyping" that we are seeing happening in other products as well.
Nike decided to focus on enhancing the "zero step" through research it performed with trainers and gold-medal sprinter Michael Johnson. The results indicated that an athlete's first steps are the most important.
"In the moment before that first step hits the turf, his propulsion and acceleration speed are determined," says MJP Performance Director Lance Walker. "At that point, it's all about geometry."
Nike plans to expand its use of the technology, implementing it in other shoes as well.
"SLS technology has revolutionized the way we design cleat plates - even beyond football - and gives Nike the ability to create solutions that were not possible within the constraints of traditional manufacturing processes," says Director of Nike Footwear Innovation Shane Kohatsu.
The technology has important implications for customization as well. While shoes have traditionally been rigid in terms of fitting to people's feet, new 3-D printing technology could take the unique shape of your foot into consideration.
Nike is not the only company, however, to be using 3-D printing technology in shoes. Recently a set of 3-D printed lightweight sprint shoes were created by French designer and engineer Luc Fusaro.
