Nike is debuting an extremely limited edition 3D printed duffle bag at this years World Cup in Brazil. The bag is named Rebento, which means “explode” in Portuguese, and is designed to hold sports equipment. The mesh design references two of Nike’s football cleats. It is printed out of nylon using a method called Selective Laser Sintering (SLS). During laser sintering, a laser heats a powdered material (in this case nylon) and binds it together. Following a 3D CAD design, laser sintering is able to easily produce extremely complex geometries that would otherwise be nearly impossible. The bag is not the only 3D printed item Nike is debuting for the World Cup.
It is also joined by 3D printed shin guards.
The Mercurial FlyLite Guard offers protection via a honeycomb / web pattern instead of traditional foam pattern. This design allows the shin guards to better dissipate impact forces and to be extremely lightweight and breathable. If you were hoping to get your hands on the Rebento bag and are not a premiere football player, you are more than likely out of luck. At this time Nike only plans to offer custom made bags to a few World Cup players. The shin guards on the other hand will be available for sale July 1st.
It is worth noting that this is not Nike’s first foray into 3D printed sports gear. They have produced several shoes using the SLS printing technology over the past year, starting with the Vapor Laser Talon.
