3D printed sole
from Flexfill PEBA 90A
by Oldrich Voyta
The very first cooperation between shoe designer Oldrich Voyta and Fillamentum began in 2015 when the Flexfill line was introduced and Oldrich printed the first prototype of wearable flexible footwear in the Czech Republic. Today, we are coming up with new, even more advanced, and interesting material, which, thanks to its properties, is predestined for use in the footwear industry. This time Oldrich Voyta printed a sole for a functional prototype of smart sensory footwear from Flexfill PEBA.
A sole, printed from Flexfill PEBA 90A, is a part of a functional prototype of smart sensory footwear representing the connection of the sensory part and hardware together with a biomechanically suitable placement inside this type of sports training shoes. Thanks to this, the concept of the very first wearables footwear in the Czech Republic was created, which is based on research activities and was tested at the Center for Polymer Systems (CPS) in Zlín.
Thanks to the internal sensory part, the footwear monitors temperature and humidity and thus prevents the development of dermatological diseases and injuries of the musculoskeletal system in the lower limbs during both, the preparation for training and during the training. The user is informed about the degree of health risks arising through a notification in the application on the smartphone, in real time, during wearing.
Flexfill PEBA 90A is suitable for printing footwear for several reasons. This filament is a thermoplastic elastomer made of two parts – the ether and the polyamide. Ether part ensures flexibility and specific mechanical behavior. The filament is characterized by the resistance against repeated bending and by high reversible deformation. Flexfill PEBA has high energy return and low hysteresis during cyclic loading, which means that almost 100% of the shape returns to its original state, even after thousands of cycles. For example, when comparing with Flexfill TPU, this fact would lead to shape loss or its damage. This is the reason why Flexfill PEBA is ideal for application where it is necessary to transform the inserted energy, preserve the vibration, or bounce another object/self/runner’s foot …
“As the first and most noticeable attribute, I must mention the flexibility, thanks to which the object – the sole or shoes in general – is a very suitable model for this material. I like that while previous materials were largely about what the final product looks like, now it is just one of many features. Functionality came to the fore thanks to the properties of this material, “ explains Oldrich Voyta, a Czech hybrid designer who studied shoe design at Tomas Bata University in Zlín.
Another important property in the production of footwear is the strength of the material. The shoe must hold its shape when one is standing on it, and PEBA also meets this parameter very well. “A weaker deformity can be seen, but this is due to the percentage infill, which is now at 17% but could be more.”
The second component of the Flexfill PEBA filament is polyamide and ensures its high chemical resistance. At the same time, thanks to the polyamide it has a lower density when compared to TPU and TPE. It enables to produce objects with low weight – for example, already mentioned running or ski shoes, where every gram plays a role for further performance of the athlete.
“It is a joy to work with material that represents not only the possibility of expressing an idea and transforming it into reality but also the functionality of a printed model, which can save a lot of money, especially for rapid prototyping in similar applications. I am very happy that thanks to the functionality, the model of the sole is fully wearable,” concludes the young designer.
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