Get GPS Directions By Shoe––Really

Oct. 25, 2016

Toss your old sneakers. Footwear is about to get a whole lot smarter, providing GPS directions and letting wearers customize their look.

We’ve all heard about smart cars, smart cities, smart appliances. Well, here’s the latest in the hubbub over all things smart: Footwear.

Though far from being the only entrant in this emerging category, the Matrix high-top sneaker features LED displays, haptic feedback and motion sensors. Wearers can adjust te LED displays to create custom visuals based on movement, GPS coordinates, or if the wearer is in a playful mood, in sync with tunes on their playlist, according to an article that appeared on Engadget. The centerpiece of the design is a 22ppi LED display that wraps around the rear of the shoe’s upper area within an injection molded thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) to provide durability.

In addition, the shoes feature a haptic device that delivers vibrating notifications and can prompt turn-by-turn directions. And the Matrix insole is home to an accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer.

The whole shebang is controlled via a mobile app, and the creator is making this an open-source project so others can create apps that utilize the motion capture data.

About the Author

Beth Stackpole, contributing writer

Contributing Editor, Automation World

Beth Stackpole is a veteran journalist covering the intersection of business and technology, from the early days of personal computing to the modern era of digital transformation. As a contributing editor to Automation World, Beth's coverage traverses a range of industries and technologies, including AI/machine learning, analytics, automation hardware and software, cloud, security, edge computing, and supply chain. In addition to her high-tech and business journalism work, Beth writes an array of custom editorial content and thought leadership pieces.