Very few manufacturing technologies are capable of delivering such personally tailored products as 3D printing. Because they are able to translate 3D files into physical reality, 3D printers can shift from producing one geometrically complex item to another without the need to create entirely new injection molds. The mass customization many anticipate to be on the manufacturing horizon will likely rely heavily on 3D printing technology for this reason.
3D-printed insoles from Wiivv. (Image courtesy of Wiivv.)
One product that may seriously benefit from a 3D-printed touch fits in the niche between your foot and the sole of your shoe. When it comes to insoles, not only has 3D printing matured sufficiently to make mass customization feasible, but orthotics can actually benefit from the technology. Rather than the standard one-size-fits-all approach of mass manufacturing, insoles should be made to fit their wearer.
At least a couple of companies are looking to tackle the orthopedic market by combining 3D scanning with 3D printing to give insoles a much-needed 21st-century update. Of those firms, Wiivv Wearables stands out by launching the most funded 3D-printed product on Kickstarter.
What It Takes to Make an Insole
Traditionally, custom shoe inserts are made through such antiquated techniques as plaster casting and foam box impressions. Patients will have their feet cast in fiberglass or plaster or, alternatively, receive a foam impression of their feet by pressing them into boxes specially designed for the purpose of creating custom insoles. The cast or impression is then sent to an orthotics lab that uses these molds as negatives with which to produce the final insert.
More recently, 3D scanners have been developed to create digital models of feet, which are then used as the basis for CNC milling a foam block into the orthotic insole. Technology by Wiivv and other startups seems to take this process a step further, combining the widespread power of smartphones with the additive power of 3D printing to streamline the process while also making it more accessible to a greater audience.
3D Scanning with the Touch of a Button
Though smartphones may soon feature built-in 3D scanners, a number of software developers are leveraging the principles of photogrammetry to translate a series of 2D images into 3D models. Wiivv uses its own proprietary software to transform photos taken with a smartphone into custom-fitted insoles.
A Wiivv graphic illustrating the photo measurement process. (Image courtesy of Wiivv Wearables.)
The Wiivv iOS app is simple to use. All that’s required is to snap a picture of each foot from the top, with your heel pressed against a wall and on top of a blank sheet of paper. Then, you take photos from the side with your iPhone on the floor and leaning against a wall. The same photo is taken without your foot as well, giving the Wiivv software a background from which your foot can be isolated.
Without giving away any tech secrets, Manuj Aggarwal, director of software at Wiivv, explained how the software works, “We take the images and run them through a series of sophisticated and proprietary image processing and computer vision algorithms to detect and extract the data from these 2D images and construct a 3D model out of it. This 3D model is then run through our customization engine to produce biomechanically engineered products, which right now are custom insoles.”
The shoe insert is further personalized through the selection of one of six different patterns for the top layer of the insole and one of four different colors for the base. Combined with the 3D model created by the five photos snapped with the Wiivv iOS app, the company has everything it needs to begin manufacturing the product.
3D Printing for Every Individual
Wiivv is able to 3D print multiple insoles within each of its selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printers, located at the firm’s manufacturing facilities in San Diego, Calif. The complete manufacturing process is a trade secret, but Ryan Coyne, director of manufacturing and operations at Wiivv, did admit that there are non-additive technologies involved in the ultimate construction of the insoles, as well as some company-specific techniques applied when post-processing the products once they are 3D printed.
The 3D-printed nylon insole is combined with a neoprene cushion. (Image courtesy of Wiivv.)
Coyne explained, “There are very unique processes and steps required to prepare and finish custom 3D-printed parts. While we are building a vision for the mass customization factory of the future, there are many processes that are currently performed manually that we are building automations for. The machines and the tools we use have been specially chosen to produce the quality of finish we expect from our finished product.”
The ability to 3D print in-house, according to Coyne, allows the company to iterate products quickly and efficiently, as well as advance the manufacturing technology itself. “[W]e are also looking to the future and the ability to iterate on the manufacturing process itself. Wiivv will be at the forefront of the adaptive manufacturing revolution required for the production of mass customized, body perfect gear.”
The materials used for the process are, again, a closely guarded secret, but Wiivv does rely on some materials from Evonik, a German chemical company that provides powders for SLS such as polyamide 12. The company recently announced that it has joined HP’s Open Platform program and will developing materials for the tech giant’s new Multi Jet Fusion (MJF) 3D printing technology. Evonik is also an investor in Wiivv, but there has not yet been any announcement that MJF will be used to produce the next generation of Wiivv products.
3D-printed insoles custom-made for the feet of the author.
Using Wiivv’s 3D-printed insoles is just a tad easier than using the iOS app. You simply slip them into your shoe and begin walking. The 3D-printed, nylon base is quite firm, but the neoprene cushion and silicone heel pad are extremely soft. The way that the Base insoles curve exactly with your foot makes them even more comfortable. The idea of having your name printed onto both sides of the orthotics certainly feels personal, like owning a luxury item tailored just to you.
The 3D-printed side of the Base insole with silicone heel pad and anti-slip tread. The author’s name is 3D printed directly into the insole, just below a personal serial number.
Whether or not they’ll add “ten active years” to my life, as Wiivv hopes its products will, is yet to be determined, but they seem as though they might make moving around on your feet a bit easier.
Beyond 3D-Printed Insoles
Everyone we spoke with at Wiivv made it clear that the company is not limiting itself to 3D-printed insoles. In actuality, custom inserts are just a stepping stone to products tailored to the fit and form of every individual.
Shamil Hargovan, co-founder and CEO of Wiivv, hinted that the company would begin its product expansion in the area of footwear. Hargovan explained, “Wiivv is looking forward to expanding in the footwear space with new products, partnerships, distribution partners and evolving our adaptive manufacturing system to further reduce costs and decrease delivery times.”
Hargovan further hinted that new apps were on the way that may even involve new mobile technologies (Tango, anyone?): “Bringing more of our technology directly into the hands of the consumer via their smartphone and leveraging new mobile device technologies are ways Wiivv is focusing on continuing to grow our brand and tech stack.”
Additionally, Wiivv seems to be looking towards the future of manufacturing as a whole, perhaps embarking on a distributed model of production. Aggarwal pointed out that the software is not limited to capturing foot data or even to photogrammetry. Other 3D scanning technology can be implemented for designing products that fit folks from head to toe.
“The way we are going about building our stack is more of a platform approach rather than an app approach. This platform could be used to onboard multiple manufacturers who have much larger capacities and much deeper geographical reach than Wiivv. We are able to leverage the power of our software platform to quickly route our custom fitted products to these 3rd party manufacturing facilities and ship these products to Wiivv customers quickly and efficiently,” Aggarwal said.
Aggarwal also hinted at the use of other 3D scanning technology that brings Tango to mind, saying, “Moreover, our platform is designed to accommodate adaptive manufacturing processes and can work with any input—aka 'scanner agnostic'—and can produce any format of output. So, rather than adhering to a particular manufacturing process, we are building a flexible, scalable software platform.”
Nothing is More Complex Than People
In other words, Wiivv has a flexible approach to manufacturing that some might say is both necessary to 3D printing as a means of end production and a more sustainable manufacturing model overall. Even companies like Airbus have begun to give credence to distributed manufacturing, which would see technologies like 3D printing used to create products locally and on-demand, thus limiting the fossil fuels (and costs) associated with shipping, reducing wastage associated with maintaining stock and promoting local economies.
All of this is leading towards a more personalized experience for individual consumers. Hargovan suggested that “one-size-fits-all” doesn’t apply to modern shoppers. “What if the same type of customized product could be made available at the same cost as its generic alternative and in the same amount of time? This is the point of mass customization—creating a new standard that every product can be custom built for each person and their need states, without additional cost or time,” Hargovan said.
Hargovan added, “One of the most unique and complicated objects in this world is the human body—from fingerprints to iris patterns, we are unique in many ways. Wiivv is creating body perfect gear that is available for the everyday consumer, custom built for them at a comparable cost to the ‘off the shelf’ alternatives.”
The idea here is that individuals are, after all, individuals. As mass customization becomes possible, not only will our social media pages reflect our individuality, but the products we consume will too. Wiivv, in particular, aims to drive this trend. The firm may be starting with insoles, but it's clear that new products will be rolled out just as new 3D printing and scanning technologies hit the market.