Integrated Load Sensing Device for Footwear Durability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing load sensing devices in footwear suffer from durability issues due to exposure to shear and compressive forces, leading to premature wear and loss of functionality, as they rely on fragile copper wirings and additional transducers.
Innovation Solution
A load sensing device with fixed-position load sensing elements integrated into the shoe sole, using a base element to maintain the relative position of sensors, eliminating the need for external wirings and additional transducers, and capable of measuring loads from different parts of the foot during movement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If pressure sensors are positioned on a flexible layer that follows the contour of the shoe, then the sensors can adapt to the shoe shape, but the sensors move relative to each other during use and require complex wirings
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple pressure sensors and their connecting wirings into a single integrated sole unit. The sensors are positioned at different areas of the sole and connected through a unified structure, eliminating the need for separate wiring runs across the shoe and reducing overall system complexity while maintaining adaptability to the shoe contour.
2Reliability
If copper wirings run along the length and breadth of the sole to connect sensors, then sensor connectivity is achieved, but the wirings are exposed to bending, shearing, compression, traction and humidity causing degradation and breakage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the sensors and their connecting structures into an integrated sole unit where the connections are built-in rather than using separate copper wirings. This integration eliminates the vulnerable wiring paths that extend across the shoe, thereby maintaining sensor connectivity while significantly improving durability and resistance to mechanical degradation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a simplified sensor connection architecture that eliminates fragile copper wirings in favor of a more robust integrated structure. This approach sacrifices the use of traditional wiring materials in exchange for a connection system that is inherently more resistant to the harsh mechanical and environmental conditions experienced by shoe soles.
3Measurement precision
If additional transducers are positioned between pressure sensors and wireless transmitting unit, then signal processing capability is improved, but device complexity and number of components increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the wireless transmitting unit directly into the sole unit with the pressure sensors, eliminating the need for separate transducers. This consolidation maintains signal processing capability while reducing the total number of components and simplifying the overall device architecture.
Data Source
AI summary
A load sensing device for a shoe includes a base element having a first side and an opposite second side. The first side has a predefined area. A first load sensing element and a second load sensing element are positioned at the first side of the base element. The first load sensing element is positioned in a first area of the predefined area of the first side, and the second load sensing element is positioned in a second area of the predefined area of the first side. The first load sensing element has a fixed position relative to the second load sensing element during use. The first load sensing element and the second load sensing element are configured to measure a load applied to at least part of the predefined area of the first side.