The Iofit smart shoe, a new wearable device originally conceived of at Samsung’s Creative Lab, is set to be showcased at next week’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.Developed by start-up Salted Venture, the Iofit incorporate data analysis technology like accelerometers and pressure sensors into the outsoles of the shoes, which, along with a coaching app, are designed to improve the user’s balance and body posture.
The Iofit measure users’ balance, weight shift, ground contact force and location of centre of gravity, which, updated in real-time, is displayed on a pressure map on the screen of the Iofit smartphone app, which pairs to the shoes.
“There’s so much valuable information coming from our feet, and it’s being wasted,” Jacob Cho, Salted Venture CEO, commented. “So, we wanted to make use of this data and utilise it to provide value to people. That was the driving force behind Iofit.”
The Iofit is specifically centred on coaching, with a system developed that “allows for an enhanced person-to-person connection”.
A video playback feature allows users to evaluate their form and the respective real-time data on one screen, allowing users to “better visualise how they look, and how their stance and posture are affecting their fitness routine or their golf swing”.
Customisable coaching and analysis software can be used to leave feedback or compare saved videos, allowing a coach to draw directly on the video or leave voice-over comments, while two videos can additionally be compared side-by-side or stacked, providing “a clearer picture of what the data should or should not look like”.
The Iofit will be on display at the Mobile World Congress from February 22 to 26.
