ShopInstantShoe European Project develops a new female footwear based on intelligent materials preventing some of the most common feet problems

- The ShopInstantShoe project searches solutions for frequent foot deseases such as the HalluxValgus, a foot deformity that affects 20% of women at adult age

- This R4SME project, granted by European Commision, ends after two years reserching for innovative solutions

- Incusa (Spain), Texinov (France), Nimesis (France), Surfgen (UK) and Calzamedi (Spain) colaborated with RTDs IBV (Spain) and MatRI (UK) to achieve the results

The consortium of SHOPINSTANTSHOE European project (VII Framework Research for SMEs) presented results in Villena, Spain, at Calzamedi’s new facilities. After more than two years researching a new adjustable female shoe based on a new memory shape composite leather/nithynol material, is now available. The new material allows fitting the shoe to the foot shape, after getting anthropometric measurements through the Shopintantshoe portable scanner and modifying it through the “Shoptool”, a prototype machine that will complete the process directly into the shop.

Seven European partners had taken part in ShopInstantShoe: three from Spain, Institute of Biomechanics of Valencia (coordinator of the project), Calzamedi and Incusa, two from France, Texinov (Lyon) and Nimesis (Strasbourg) and two from UK, Surfgen (Lyndon) and The UK Materials Technology Research Institute (Melton Mowbray).

As Juan Carlos González, Director of Footwear and Clothing Area at IBV, explained “we developed an innovating customization process directly in the shop that allow to scan client feet in order to get basic anthropometric measures and adjust shoes immediately through the Shoptool”.

“This is possible thanks to the new memory shape composite material made by leather andnithynol”, Mr. González adds, “Whoever will get the best fit, and if finally they don’t want to buy, the shoe will recover the original shape by warming it up during few seconds”.

Memory shoes

The new memory shape material allows getting fashionable female shoes that are fully ergonomic, comfortable, innovative and customized. All the process will take place in the shop, so the buyer’s experience will be completely relaxing avoiding feeling embarrassed for the little differences that every foot can have. The entire process should be set up in every comfort shoe shop when the ShopInstant prototype will get to the market.

Feet diseases represent an important social problem, being the female population who principally suffer from it. The Hallux Valgus is the most frequent feet deformation affecting 20% of women at adult age. This pathology, together with others as hammertoes, claw toes, metatarsalgia and ingrown nails take place at the front part of the foot and are mainly caused by continued use of inadequate footwear, due to the mismatch between the morphometry of the foot and the footwear.

Trends on aesthetics and fashion of the female footwear compel to realize a more precise fitting to guarantee the comfort and functionality of this product. However, the variability in the foot size and shape among persons makes very difficult to achieve an adequate fitting for each individual consumer, and the result is, especially in the case of women, uncomfortable and unhealthy footwear.

European shoe industry needs to innovate for continuing being competitive: that is why ShopInstantShoe is the project that fits the best in the comfort shoe market.

Through FP7, the European Commission granted the proposal two years ago, offering to small enterprises new possibilities in the future market and to the all-potential customers an occasion to improve their quality of life.

 

Further information:

E-mail comunicacion(at)ibv.org