Smart Shoes – Current Developments and the Future Trends

Consumers are the main drivers of many products being required, developed, and continuously changing. They try to seek for products that fulfill their requirements and improve their life. Among a wide range of products available on the market, garments and footwear are items used in everyday life and in continues change driven by fashion trends. Especially footwear are products that should meet high requirements by offering comfort to the wearer. The last one can be measured through the development of smart shoes. They are the type of wearable’s that have incorporated a device or sensors that empowers the wearer with personalized data which are interpreted to improve performance of the user. The great power of Internet of Things as one of the pillars of Industry 4.0 makes possible that signals taken can be digitally connected. As our lives are becoming digital the wearable is on their way to improve our shoe wearing experiences. This paper presents the main current developments of smart shoes based on Industry 4.0 enabling technologies. Thanks to these technologies, it is possible to analyse their impact on consumer comfort and to monitor, evaluate and mitigate health problems.