Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd. (TOKYO:7282) has developed “Smart Insoles” with embedded e-Rubber* sensors that can obtain foot pressure data during movement. The company began shipping samples of Smart Insoles to a golf school operated by Mizuno Corporation (Mizuno Golf Studio, Ozone Branch) in June 2021.
Smart Insoles are light and durable, and can detect and measure subtle changes in foot pressure with high accuracy by taking advantage of the feature of e-Rubber as a thin, flexible sensor. With the insoles, shifts in body weight when swinging a club and other data can be sensed chronologically and displayed on a tablet computer with different color intensities (heat map). This will help to improve users’ golf form. A demonstration trial will be conducted together with the golf school to test the use of Smart Insoles. General sales are also planned as functions in the dedicated app are added to include accumulation and analysis of data and other features. Using these insoles, Toyoda Gosei will expand to future services that will help athletes in various sports to improve.
Toyoda Gosei is also collaborating with companies, local government agencies, and medical institutions to explore not only sports applications but also applications in the healthcare field such as early detection (preventive medicine) of weakening of the legs with age.
*e-Rubber is a next-generation rubber that moves with electricity. It can act as a thin, flexible sensor that can detect even very small weights or as an actuator that reacts instantaneously to voltage turned on and off.