Methods for producing footwear with materials having multiple mechanisms of hardening
A method of forming a three-dimensional object, wherein said three-dimensional object is a footwear sole, heel, innersole or midsole, is described. The method may use a polymerizable liquid, or resin, useful for the production by additive manufacturing of a three-dimensional object, comprising a mixture of (i) a light polymerizable liquid first component, and (ii) a second solidifiable component that is different from said first component.
1. A method of forming a three-dimensional object, wherein said three-dimensional object is a footwear sole, heel, innersole or midsole, comprising:
(a) providing a carrier and an optically transparent member having a build surface, said carrier and said build surface defining a build region therebetween;
(b) filling said build region with a polymerizable liquid, said polymerizable liquid comprising a mixture of (i) a light polymerizable liquid first component, and (ii) a second solidifiable component that is different from said first component;
(c) irradiating said build region with light through said optically transparent member to form a solid polymer scaffold from said first component and also advancing said carrier away from said build surface to form a three-dimensional intermediate having a shape of said footwear sole, heel, innersole or midsole, said three-dimensional intermediate containing said second solidifiable component carried in said scaffold in unsolidified and/or uncured form; and
(d) subsequent to said irradiating step, heating, microwave irradiating, or both heating and microwave irradiating, second solidifiable component in said three-dimensional intermediate to form said footwear sole, heel, innersole or midsole.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein said second component comprises a polymerizable liquid solubilized in or suspended in said first component.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein said second component comprises:
(i) a polymerizable solid suspended in said first component;
(ii) a polymerizable solid solubilized in said first component; or
(iii) a polymer solubilized in said first component.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein said three-dimensional object comprises a polymer blend, interpenetrating polymer network, semi-interpenetrating polymer network, or sequential interpenetrating polymer network formed from said first component and said second solidifiable component.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein step (d) is carried out by heating said second solidifiable component.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein said second solidifiable component comprises the precursors to a polyurethane, polyurea, or copolymer thereof, a silicone resin, an epoxy resin, a cyanate ester resin, or a natural rubber.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein said second solidifiable component comprises the precursors to a polyurethane, polyurea, or copolymer thereof.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein said second solidifiable component comprises the precursors to a polyurea or a copolymer or polyurea and polyurethane.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein method is carried out by bottom-up stereolithography.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object is a footwear sole.
11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object is a footwear heel.
12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object is a footwear innersole.
13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object is a footwear midsole.
14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object is elastomeric.
15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object comprises enclosed cavities, partially open cavities, or a combination thereof.
16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object comprises repeating unit cells.
17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object comprises lattice structures.