Customised orthotics that roll out of a printer in a short time. With this innovation, Eindhoven-based start-up T-Soles is having success in the United States. For this purpose, the company combines the CT scan, which is found in hospitals, with a 3D printer.
With the scan, feet are accurately imaged. A software program converts the scan to a suitable orthotic, which then rolls out of a special 3D printer.
Faster
Normally it takes weeks for an orthopedic shoemaker to customize orthotics by hand. With T-Soles’ technology, it can be done in seventy minutes. “And with regular orthotics, you have to look for a shoe that your orthotic fits into. With the 3D printer, on the contrary, you get an orthotic that fits into your favourite shoe”, Caroline van Heijkamp of T-Soles explains.
In the United States, the soles are selling like hotcakes, Van Heijkamp says. A branch has now opened in Eindhoven. Here, fifty people have now stood in the scanner, and soles have subsequently been printed.
Of all over-65s in the Netherlands, more than 75 percent have foot problems. For twenty percent of them, orthotics are recommended. This technology might help in getting them treated faster.
Source: Studio040.nl
Translated by: Anitha Sevugan
