Nike continues to push the limits of innovation in many areas
of fashion and footwear. They previously have debuted football cleats built
using 3D printing technology. The Nike Vapor HyperAgility Cleat, built for the
shuttle drill (or 5-10-5), has taken innovation and athlete agility to a new
level. In the quest to help make athletes better, Nike has been working toward
accelerating the footwear manufacturing process through 3D printing
technology.
The Nike Vapor HyperAgility cleat, born from Nike’s “Shuttle
Project,” took innovation and traditional footwear manufacturing to a new level.
In addition to linear speed, the game of football requires agility and lateral
quickness. The mastery of these skills is seen on a grand stage as pro scouts
clock athlete’s “shuttle” or “5-10-5” drill times in order to assess them for
game-time ability. Optimal traction on turf, reducing deceleration time, and
traction confidence, are all critical requirements when “cutting” or changing
direction quickly.
Nike Vapor HyperAgility Cleat built for the Shuttle drill
features 3D printed cleat plate.
Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) is a 3D printing technology
that uses high-powered lasers to fuse small particles of materials into a
3-dimentional shape. Traditionally this process is used for prototyping, but
through proprietary material selection, Nike was again able to create fully
functional plate and traction system in a fraction of the traditional timeframe
and at a fraction of the weight. Once again, 3D printing has revolutionized the
way Nike designs and manufactures footwear, allowing designers to make updates
within hours, instead of months, to truly accelerate the innovation
process.
Learn more about the Nike
3D Printed Football Cleat Concept news from a few years ago. You can also
visit the Nike
website to learn more about how they have been innovating the cleat & shoe
market.
You may also find interest in our article about the 3D Printed Shoe Progression.
Thank you for taking the time to read our footwear news article.
If you are new to 3D printed fashion or shoes, you may want to read our 3D printed shoe term.