GB2544733A

GB2544733A - Tools and method to 3D print shoes

Info

Publication number: GB2544733A
Application number: GB1520439.9A
Authority: GB
Inventors: John Clark David
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2015-11-19
Filing date: 2015-11-19
Publication date: 2017-05-31
Also published as: GB201520439D0

Abstract

A method of printing shoes using a 3d printer comprising a computer controlled multi axis printer with a build plate B that can move and rotate in multiple directions, onto which the 3D printer deposits materials. The 3d shoe may be printed onto a last that has itself been 3D printed onto the build plate by the 3d printer. Alternatively the 3d shoe is printed onto a build plate that is shaped as a universal foot which is milled by the 3d printer to form a custom last upon which 3d material from the printer is deposited. Preferably the build plate is attached to a fixed point to allow the plate to be repositioned. The build plate may also be heated to aid adhesion of the deposited material, and made from more than one piece to allow the plate to be removed from the shoe. The build plate may have a removable cover that acts as a release agent to prevent the deposited material E from sticking to the build plate B. The cover may be painted, rubbed or sprayed onto the plate, or may be in the form of a sock S that may be printed on and form an integral part of the shoe.

Description

Tools and method to 3d print shoes.

This invention relates to tools and a method to manufacture custom made shoes. More particularly this invention relates to a 3d printing technique that prints directly onto and follows the surface shape of a custom shoe last.

Various methods have been used to manufacture custom and generic footwear. Some modem techniques require the 3d scanning of the foot to aid the design of a custom shoe, the custom shoe can then be designed around the 3d scanned foot using 3d modelling technology. One way to manufacture a shoe from a 3d model is to use 3d printing technology, indeed this method has been used on numerous occasions to manufacture shoes but has design and manufacturing limitations. To date all 3d printed shoes have been manufactured using multiple axis 3d printers that print the shoe on a flat plate also known as a build plate, this approach has printing limitations because it's difficult to combine different materials and shapes of differing curvatures and thickness while combining to manufacture a shoe that follows the exact surface curvatures of the foot. To overcome these problems the present invention proposes a way to manufacture a shoe using a 3d printing method that gives enhanced design ability due in part by the enhanced 3d printing ability of the proposed 3d printing method.

The proposed 3d printing surface or build plate will not be flat like conventional 3d printing machines but will be the shape of a "shoe last" that is the exact shape as the inside shape of the designed shoe. (From this point on, when "build plate" is used in this document one can think of it as the platform for 3d printing onto and as such is the shape of the required "shoe last").

This inside shape of the shoe could be that of a scanned foot or a generic foot design with specific sizes used for universal fitments.

The build plate could be formed from any desired material in position within the 3d printing machine.

The build plate could be formed using a cutting tool that is built into the 3d printing machine. A pre moulded build plate that is a little larger than the size required is clamped onto a fixture within the machine. A cutting tool head will them form the build plate to the required shape. Or the build plate could be formed using the 3d printer - a build plate that is a little smaller than that of the build plate required could be clamped onto the machine, once in position the 3d printer could "build up" the build plate to the required size. With either method the build plate can then be removed and will always reposition back into the machine at the exact same position.

Figure 1 shows an example of the 3d printing machine. (A) is the print head that can be positioned anywhere on the build plate (B) to deposit the required material. (C ) is the fixture point of build plate (B) to the 3d printing machine.

The 3d printer would have multiple axis or a robotic arm or a combination of both to ensure that all the required positions on the build plate could have material deposited onto them from the print head positioned above the build plate and that any cutting tool can also reach all required positions on the build plate.

The 3d printer could have a single or multiple print heads that can discharge different materials onto the build plate and on top of one another. These print heads would discharge material onto the build plate from above the build plate.

The build plate could have a removable cover over it, this cover could be painted, rubbed or sprayed onto the build plate or could be in the shape of a sock and pulled over the build plate and made from any desired material. This sock will act as a release membrane to stop the printed material from bonding to the build plate, the sock material could also act and be used as the inside and or outside surface of the finished shoe and could have specific design features already built into it.

Figure 2 shows the build plate (B) with the sock fitted (S) and with a design (D) already on the sock prior to 3d printing.

The printing process will commence on the build plate/ sock after the print head is positioned over the print bed. The shoe will be printed "inside out" from or close to the inside surface of the shoe and will finish printing at the outside surface of the shoe. Different materials could be deposited by the 3d printer on top of the build plate/ sock, on top of each other or next to each other. For example to make the bottom of the shoe a soft material could be deposited onto the build plate/ sock at the specific position to form the insole followed by printing the desired material for the mid-sole then finally the out-sole material. Reinforcement panels and structures could be printed with different design patterns and materials on top of the build plate/ sock at the desired location around the build plate/ sock. The build plate could be heated to aid the adhesion of the 3d printing material to the build plate or sock. The build plate could be made so as it splits into parts to allow for the removal of the finished shoe. An example of a method used to manufacture a custom shoe is as follows. Before a shoe could be custom 3d printed a reusable build plate has to be made, the build plate would be in the shape of the subjects foot and when finished would almost look like a conventional shoe last. To make the build plate a subjects foot would be 3d scanned and the resulting 3d image uploaded into a 3d software design package. The 3d scanned foot image would then either be left as a foot image or smoothed out to look more like a shoe last, either way the 3d image would be modified to have a universal fixture point added onto it so as to facilitate the connection off the built plate to the 3d printer. The 3d build plate image can now have the shoe designed around it. If a sock is to be used then the thickness of the sock will first be added to the built plate thereafter the shoe style can be designed on top of the sock. The designer would have lots of design freedom to design a sophisticated shoe knowing that lots of complex shapes can be printed onto the build plate, the proposed method allows an array of 3d printable materials that are always supported by the build plate coupled with the advantage of 3d printing the shoe from the inside of the shoe to the outside means that the design and manufacturing possibilities are endless. Once the shoe is designed the next stage would be to make the build plate. An array of universal foot size build plate moulds could be made available to manufacture the custom built plate from. For a custom fit shoe the build plate could be made from one of these universal build plates by either machining material from the build plate or 3d printing material onto the build plate until the desired shape and size are achieved. The proposed shoe making machine could be built with the ability to either cut or add material to the built plate depending on the user's preferences. After the shoe is designed and using the appropriate software, computer code for controlling the 3d printers to make a shoe can now be made. The software would have exact control over the printing stages. The software could be pre configured to use different materials, feeds and speeds to suit the designed shoe. The finished computer code can then be sent to the 3d printer and with the build plate in position, a sock put over the build plate or some other form of release agent and printing materials loaded into the 3d printer then the printing process can begin.

Figure 3 shows the 3d printer head (A) depositing material (E) onto sock (S) that also has design (D) 3d printed on it at an earlier time, everything is built onto and supported by the build plate (B)

Claims

1. A shoe making machine and method comprising a computer controlled multi axis 3d printer with a build plate that can move and rotate in multiple directions and such build plate is shaped and used as a shoe last being the same shape as the inside of the required shoe to be made, a sock made from any desired material that fits tightly over the build plate, and a print head or heads that can 3d print the desired material onto the sock or build plate .

2. A shoe making method according to claim 1 whereas the shoe making machine can manufacture its own build plate by either removing material from a larger pre formed generic build plate using a cutting method or enlarge a smaller pre formed generic build plate by 3d printing on top of the generic build plate until the desired shape is obtained.

3. A shoe making machine according to claim 1 whereas the build plate can be clamped onto a fixture with a known datum point that allows exact repositioning of the build plate whenever the build plate is taken off or put on the fixture.

4. A build plate as in claim 1 that can be heated to aid the adhesion of materials that are being 3d printed onto the build plate or sock and a build plate made from more than 1 piece for easy shoe removal after printing.

5. A shoe making machine according to claim 1 that has computer controlled rotating and linear movement axis's so as to enable the positioning of either a cutting tool or 3d printing head onto whatever position is required to either cut or 3d print a complete build plate or 3d print a complete or parts of a shoe.

6. A sock as in claim 1 that can be put tightly over the build plate and 3d printed onto so as to either work as a release agent enabling the shoe releases easily from the build plate, or a sock than can be 3d printed onto and forms an integral part of the shoe.