Want to curl it like Cantona but more likely to hoof it like Heskey? This smart football boot might be the answer.
Developed by researchers at the German Research Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), the shoe is able to detect and analyse exactly how a player kicks a football, with an accompanying analytics system providing in-depth feedback on what went wrong and why.
The shoe uses pressure-sensitive sensors hidden under the laces to record exactly how a ball is kicked. The system is comprised of two 3 x 4, and one 3 x 3 silver-coated matrices, with a conductive, carbon layer sandwiched between. When pressure is applied, the signal from the layer changes, providing a detailed heatmap of how a ball met a player’s foot.
A small 800mA/h Li-Po battery provides around eight hours of usage, including wireless transmission of data via Bluetooth to a companion app. The accuracy and reliability of the technology was tested using a kick robot at an adidas facility. This test, which encompassed 17 types of shots, is used by adidas to reliably test all of its new shoes.
The pressure-sensitive fabric system in the smart boot, developed by Swiss firm SEFAR, costs in the region of €100 to €150 per square metre and has been used in the shoe as a proof-of-concept. The boot remains a prototype, but the team behind the work hopes it will find a commercial partner.
The technology, detailed in an academic paper published in December 2016, was on display at the CeBIT technology show in Hanover, Germany. The same system has also been used in an experimental muscle monitor for thighs, and a shirt that monitors muscle use in the chest and upper arms. A 1 x 3-metre exercise matt prototype has also been developed that can be used for gait analysis and tracking exercises such as squats.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
