Shoes not just provide comfort for when we walk, but provide support to athletes and people who need them, but due to wear and tear they lose their support over time and it would be great if people knew when to replace them. Interestingly it seems that of all companies, Apple might be the one to actually come up with a solution in a recent patent for what seems like a pair of “smart shoes”. Obviously Apple is not getting into the shoemaking business, but the patent describes a sensor that can be fitted into a shoe that has the ability to detect when a pair of shoes is beginning to wear out. Considering that sensors for shoes already exist, such as the Nike+ and Adidas miCoach, it might not be sure a ludicrous idea after all.
Basically the sensor works in threefold – it will firstly be able to detect when a pair of shoes begins to deteriorate. Next the data will be sent to a processor to be quantified, and lastly an alarm which will alert the wearer when their pair of shoes is no longer “stable”. We’re all guilty of wearing shoes way past their “stable” phase, but for those who are really picky, this could be a really useful feature. It’s hard to determine when a pair of shoes really begins to degrade, and the patent takes care of this by implementing an activity number which basically provides a set value of actions or moves before the user is alerted. It’s hard to say if Apple will actually turn this idea into a reality, but what do you guys think? Is this something you’d like to see?
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