How Rapid Prototyping Technology lead the fashion?

3D Printed the Dress

A 3D printed dress that apparently might seem completely made of fabric, at first glance it appears soft and sinuous, able to move and sway just like any cotton dress. In reality, this is an incredible result obtained thanks to the use of a new creative process, conceived by the Nervous System design studio.

Kinematics, the name of the project, combines origami techniques with new approaches to 3D printing, experimenting with the most advanced rapid prototyping technologies .In fact, we start with the 3D model of a dress made with any CAD and it is composed in blocks, triangular segments of various sizes. It is possible to control the size, position and quantity of the triangles with a design tool based on Javascript and view in real time how the changes will have an impact on the polygonal artifact.

The designer Jessica has made this technique even more advanced, inserting buttons, expertly modeled on the triangles, making the clothes even easier to put on and take off. The result is amazing, as her dress moves adhering perfectly and flowing just like it was made of fabric. Thanks to the 3D scans of the model’s body she managed to get a perfect fit. She worked with a prototype manufacturer to optimize the print quality and aesthetics, thanks to the attention to every detail her garment was recently acquired by the Museum of Modern Art.

Her creations range from abstract forms to clothes and objects, from which emerges a great interest in experimenting and using always different materials. Her latest collection, “Wanderers”, presented at Euromold represents a further demonstration of how 3d printing represents one of the most concrete examples of how rapid prototyping technology can look continuously towards the future.

Why a shoe made with 3D printing?

It is a real race for innovation, the one that has involved the major world sportswear brands such as Adidas, Nike, New Balance and Under Armor, in the new technological concept, capable of combining 3D printing and shoes. Each of these multinationals has proposed a prototype of a shoe with a plastic sole made entirely with 3D printing techniques, and the future holds many other innovations.The application of rapid prototyping logic to the world of footwear seems to be an ideal solution for the most common problems .The first thing that comes to think of a shoe is the first fundamental advantage: the size. Surely many of us will have found themselves having to make a difficult choice, especially in terms of half sizes and compatibility with foreign measurement systems.

If the future linked 3D printing and shoes inextricably, all these problems would be eliminated, and each of us would have the shoe with a sole molded on the sole of the foot. In addition to the size, a 3D printed and therefore completely customized shoe would represent the definitive solution to some postural difficulties . So this style rapid prototyping service is cost effective.

Some foot malformations lead the patient to have to choose specific footwear in order to reduce pain and discomfort. Designing a model starting directly from the foot would fix all these problems .The combination of 3D printing technology and shoes is definitely a revolution that guarantees double satisfaction. On the one hand, customer happiness, for complete and subjective personalization, on the other hand, that of the company, capable of significantly reducing warehouse and storage costs.