Delving into Korea's 3D printing fashion

국내 3D printing 패션 현황 잠재력

Feels like yesterday when making the tiniest morsel of plastic product using 3D printing blew our minds.
It has come a long way since the humble beginnings... even playing a growing role in the world of fashion.
Kim Ji-yeon introduces to us how the technology is being incorporated in the industry

Scan it, print it, wear it
The future of fashion looks set to be 3D.
At least that's the end goal for recently launched collaboration of 3D fashion.
A three-year project led by a team of researchers in Kookmin and Kyung-in Women's universities aims to revolutionize the realm of fashion by making clothing printable for the masses.
The concept isn't an entirely new one as many foreign companies and fashion designers have toyed with the idea for years.


"Previous attempts to print clothes have hit a standstill as textures were close to flexible plastic, not suitable for wearable clothing. So we came to understand the need to research fabric structures in detail with hopes it will become the basis for improvements in 3D material technologies."

The team focused on three different types of structures: knitwear, chainmail... which consists of small rings linked together... and the insertion of pins onto soft urethane material.
They're used in this meters-long 3D printer to conjure up a dress in one piece from the bottom-up in 18 hours... eliminating the need for thread, needles or sowing.
Up until now it took 2-thousand hours straight to print out a dress through smaller, multiple printers.

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