German sportswear company, Adidas, in partnership with Silicon Valley-based tech company, Carbon, has unveiled the first performance footwear crafted using Digital Light Synthesis – the Futurecraft 4D.
Digital Light Synthesis is a breakthrough process pioneered by Carbon that uses digital light projection, oxygen-permeable optics, and programmable liquid resins to generate high-performance, durable polymeric products. Simply put, they’re using light and oxygen to print these kinds of products.
The process can be compared to 3D printing but without the limitations such as slow production rate and the need for tooling and prototyping, allowing Adidas to print previously impossible designs without labor intensive and complex assemblies.
Adidas plans to create high-performance footwear through Digital Light Synthesis, with more than 100,000 pairs by end of 2018.
source: Adidas
