Oct 5, 2015 | By Kira
As of today, you can design and order custom-fit, biomechanically optimized insoles directly from your iPhone, and even have them shipped within ten business days for less than the cost of traditional orthotics. SOLS Flex are the first 3D printed custom insoles available directly to consumers, with the ability to absorb shock, alleviate heel pressure and respond to your individual gait. Combining luxurious comfort, a fully digital ordering platform and NASA-grade materials, these aren’t your grandma’s orthotics.
SOLS, the New York-based premium lifestyle brand, has been a pioneering voice in mass customization and direct-to-consumer 3D printed goods. SOLS Rx are already available at more than 650 podiatrists across the country, and through their partnership with WebPT, their 3D printed foot orthotics have been made available to 43,000 rehab therapy professionals. Earlier this year, however, the company confirmed its efforts to reach customers directly, raising $11.1 million for the cause. SOLS Flex marks their triumphant arrival to the consumer market.
The insoles themselves are made from advanced 3D printer materials, including Nylon 11, a NASA-grade plastic. Features include arch support, cushioning, increased comfort, relief from foot, ankle and back pain, leading to better overall posture, more effective training and pain-free living. They can be used by athletes to desk jockeys, and can be slipped into almost any kind of shoe so that wearers can maintain their style. “SOLS Flex have a universal appeal to consumers whether they want to take a preventative approach, corrective approach, power through an intense work-out or simply live pain free,” said the company in a release.
What makes SOLS Flex truly special is that they are customized and optimized in every way possible to the wearer’s individual foot, and can be ordered and fitted without a costly trip to the podiatrist. After downloading the iOS app, customers can use their phones to snap photos of each foot in weight and non-weight bearing stances. Those images are used to generate more than 1,000 data points, creating a 3D model of the insole that perfectly reflects the user’s foot and individual needs. Once designed, customers can order the 3D printed product, available in leather, neoprene and wool, with various finishes and color options. While SOLS Rx are sold through doctor’s offices for between $300-$700 (and traditional orthotics range from $500 and up), SOLS Flex retail for only $199. They are made in America from start to finish, and shipped within ten business days.
To mark the launch, SOLS has partnered with the 2015 IRONMAN World Championship presented by GoPro on October 10 in Hawaii. The competition is an extreme display of athleticism, and given the inevitable achy feet and sore legs that will follow, a collaboration with SOLS would seem to be the perfect fit (in every sense). The IRONMAN event is the first touchpoint of a larger partnership between the two brands, which will take place over 2016.
In addition to helping improve customers’ quality of life, health, and comfort with their biomechanically optimized insoles, SOLS is one of the first companies to effectively bring 3D printing into the consumer space. While the technology is making huge advancements in the industrial, aerospace, and medical sectors, few people see a use for it in their daily lives. SOLS Flex could change all of that. "We're on a mission to redesign movement and change the way people approach the taboo topic of foot health because every step should be supported and comfortable," said Kegan Schouwenburg, CEO and Founder of SOLS. "Today we're making insoles, but who knows what the future will bring. We're on a path to lead the industry in mass bespoke fashion – footwear and beyond."
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
Maybe you also like:
- Build impossible towers with 3D printed Tricky Bricks
- Make metal parts with 3D printer using lost polymer casting method
- Designers 3D print gorgeous and environmentally friendly Monicker Watch
- 3D printed heart helps facilitate successful surgery; holding his heart in his hands is 'amazing', says patient
- Maker uses 3D printing to create impressive scale models of Eve Online ships
- Norwegian designer releases 'Plotclock for Dummies' for 3D printed time-plotting robot
- Drive safe and hands free with 3D printed Bsteady smartphone car mount
- Here's how you can 3D print your own brain
- Quebec University developing 3D printed hockey puck for the visually impaired
- Funeral platform Yiko aims to promote cremation, reduce cost of burials with 3D printed urns
3Ders.org provides the latest news about 3D printing technology and 3D printers. We are now seven years old and have around 1.5 million unique visitors per month.
