Page 26 - The 10 Most Promising 3D Printing Service Providers 2019

Innovations in

5 3D Printing

3D Printing technology is constantly evolving and definitely has a lot in its pocket for the future. The level of
customization that the technology offers opens up the door for its application in many industries, allowing it
to solve a lot of problems. This write-up will leave you with a glimpse of work in progress in the 3D Printing
Industry.

1. 3D Printed Food

If food was just meant to satisfy hunger, it wouldn’t be a very
thoughtful selection. Someone has rightly said, “You are, what you
eat”. While we are getting busier everyday and are more prone to
diseases, wouldn’t it be cool if a single meal of ours could supply
all the nutrients that our body needed and wouldn’t have the
ingredients which is harmful for a particular individual.
With 3D Printed food this can be very much possible. The big
brains have already started working on redefining food production.
Food 3D Printing works similar to normal 3D Printing: material is extruded and deposited layer by layer on a
surface. During food printing, edible materials are inserted via a syringe like container. The technology allows
precisely measuring and placing each calorie and nutrient as the food gets ready. Dishes can be made in any
desired shape.
Possibilities with food 3D Printing is many: ingredients can be combined in different ways to address specific
nutritional needs, saving us with a lot of time that we spend in manual selection of food. It will help us tackle
obesity. Synthetic meat products could be 3D Printed by using cultured cells. This can be a great boon during
the times of disaster management. Experts are working hard to gain control over the textural aspects of 3D
Printed food, from storage to baking. They may also come up with diet foods which would leave us feeling full
and would help refrain from snacking.
2. 3D Printed Shoes
Uncomfortable footwear can be a great pain. For long the footwear
industry has been operating on the model of one size fits all. We
get to chose from limited shoe sizes, besides the fact that even
though the length of both your feet may be same, but each might
require different size of shoes. With 3D Printing, we can hope to
get a resolution for the same.

A San Diego based startup; Feetz is working on the concept and
has come up with a limited version of customized 3D Printed
shoes. They are using a smartphone app to capture three
photos of foot from different angles, which is used to create exact fit footwear. Biggies like Nike, Adidas,
and New Balance have started using 3D Printing for producing running shoes and cleats. Under Armour is
the first among the industry to make 3D Printed shoes that could be used for performance training. The
shoe uses a 3D-printed lattice midsole. Along with 3D Printing, the company is also using Generative Design
technology. Generative design technique tries to copy nature’s evolutionary approach to design.