Shoe Bottom Bending Sensor for Accurate Ambulation Tracking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional shoe devices for tracking ambulation data face inaccuracies and functional degradation due to direct contact with the foot, leading to inconvenience and potential damage from continuous impacts.
Innovation Solution
A non-contact measuring device for ambulation data is designed with a bending sensor placed between the forefoot and heel in the shoe's bottom, generating a voltage signal and using a control unit to derive ambulation parameters, which includes an inertial measurement unit for additional data and wireless communication capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a sensor is installed in direct contact with the foot to measure ambulation data, then measurement precision is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to continuous impacts and contact faults
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces the shoe bottom as an intermediary element between the foot and the bending sensor. The sensor is embedded in the shoe bottom to sense bending signals transmitted through the shoe material, rather than being in direct contact with the foot. This intermediary structure protects the sensor from direct impact while maintaining measurement capability through the shoe's bending motion.
2Ease of operation
If a printed circuit board is installed directly pressed by the underside of the foot for electronic counting, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to function degradation from continuous impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The shoe bottom serves as a protective intermediary layer between the foot and the printed circuit board. The circuit board is installed in the shoe bottom rather than being directly pressed by the foot, shielding it from continuous impacts while maintaining the ambulation counting function through signal processing of bending sensor data.
3Measurement precision
If a sensor is installed to come into direct contact with the forefoot or heel, then measurement precision is improved, but object-affected harmful factors increase due to inconvenience and damage from continuous impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The shoe bottom acts as an intermediary structure that transmits bending signals from the foot to the sensor without requiring direct sensor-foot contact. This eliminates the harmful effects of direct contact, including user inconvenience and sensor damage from impacts, while preserving measurement precision through the shoe's bending motion detection.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides accurate and durable ambulation data tracking without direct foot contact, enhancing user convenience and preventing sensor damage, suitable for smart shoes and monitoring systems.
Implementation Method 1
The bending sensor may include a piezoelectric element to sense a bending signal by the bending of the bottom of the shoe and output a voltage signal
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a measuring device for ambulation data including a bending sensor installed in a bottom of a shoe to sense a bending signal transmitted by bending of the bottom of the shoe and generate a voltage signal while a user is walking, a control unit electrically connected to the bending sensor to derive an ambulation parameter by processing the outputted voltage signal, and a terminal to output the ambulation parameter transmitted from the control unit, wherein the bending sensor is placed between a part that touches a forefoot and a part that touches a heel in the bottom of the shoe.