Smart wireless foot plantar pressure measurement systems

Foot plantar pressure is the interface pressures between the foot outer surface and the supporting surface that human experience during daily activities. Information derived from such pressure is important for diagnosing diseases, designing footwear, enhancing sport performance and preventing injuries. A number of dedicated systems are available in the market and research laboratory for measuring plantar pressure. This paper presents an in-shoe wireless plantar pressure measurement and processing system developed at Victoria University. The system is based on Microelectromechanical (MEMS) sensor that was recently fabricated by Victoria University (VU Sensor). The VU sensor is small in size, has high-pressure range measurement capability and negligible hysteresis. The key features of the designed system are sensor controllability for power consumption management and a patient feedback for rehabilitation. The preliminary experiment shows its good functionality