Besides the magic Delorean, the flying scooter and Nike shoes that tie themselves are perhaps the two elements of Back to the Future still causing more commotion. The Nike brand launched in fact a replica of the sports in 2011, with more good intentions (the benefits were for the Michael J. Fox Foundation seeking a cure for Parkinson’s disease) that effectiveness: the laces are not tied up alone.
Although it appears that 2015 Nike will have solved the problem of shoelaces, until then we can console ourselves with this model created by the Spanish Recreus, a company that sells components and filament for 3D printers and models gives step so that can give a little good atmosphere to printer.
Recreus created the 1.75 mm filament Filaflex, which defines in its post as the flexible filament on the market. To demonstrate its capability, designed the model Sneakerbot II, inspired by the same post in films like Back to the Future, Star Wars and Short. Although the reference to the first is clear, as the other two is more trapped by hairs. Maybe the Empire air of aggressive design lines? Maybe cords with cable vocation?
The shoes not only serve to promote the flexible filament. To use the features of 1.75 mm Filaflex, Recreus created components for 3D printer. So, you have a hot end manufactured with stainless steel M6 and a PTFE tube, conceived as shown 3DPrintingIndustry to facilitate the transition from the flexible filament through a nozzle of 0.4 mm. They have also developed a new extruder so that the filament is not entangled during printing. Luckily, the extruder can be printed with the printer itself.
Maybe not exactly a return to the future, but of course there is a full entry in the future.