Updated: January 12th, 2019
Samsung Smart Shoes at CES 2019

For those of you who don’t know, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is an innovative tradeshow that each year gives the opportunity to manufacturers and pioneers to present unique advancements in technology. Everything from small companies and individuals to industry titans is valid here.

All kind of technology is presented — from vehicles to 3D printing, smart cities… and of course, our topic, wearable technology. Samsung has made some astonishing declarations that caught our interest.

Wait… what’s Samsung got to do with running?

Shoes. Smart ones.

They’ve already shown their capacity to implement Internet of Things (IoT) on nearly any business they want. It happens that they started expanding across the running shoe market. Though their proposal is just a (patented) prototype, and nothing has been officially confirmed yet, we have an idea of what’s coming.

Let’s take a look.

Smart Running Shoe Patent

What we know so far is that Samsung C&T Corporation has registered two designs for their patent, consisting of a running shoe with a sensor on the external side of the heel counter. These became officially accepted last December 27th.

samsung-smart-running-shoes
Source: LetsGoDigital

What could this sensor be about?

All that’s been revealed so far is that the sensor will activate some smart features. These features are, apparently, aimed at improving running performance. We just don’t know how yet. Many suggestions aim at step counters, pressure sensors, cardiac features, pronation tools, and overall insight on runs.

It’s very likely that this release comes with a mobile application as a way to extract and visualize the gathered data. We might even see some real-time data transmission to our mobile phones, featuring tips on our running form, the range of motion, pace, speed, and other factors that will change based on our set goals.

Maybe more than a running shoe…

Keep in mind that we’re talking about Samsung, the world’s largest information technology company, consumer electronics maker and chipmaker (measured by 2017 revenues). There’s no such thing as a small Samsung project. If they make something, it’s probably huge.

Thus, we expect much more than just a chip that tells us how we run. Given the company we’re talking about, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is likely to have its role in the project. This means the shoe will learn from us and our performance, and make accurate conclusions on what’s the best for our body.

Design

Let’s be honest — we all care what our shoes look like, no matter how good. Samsung will probably leave this aspect in the hands of a shoe manufacturer with more experience on the field. The question is, though, who will have such a privilege? Will it be a dominant running shoe manufacturer like Nike or Adidas? Or maybe a market underdog with a brilliant idea?

smart-running-shoes-b
Source: LetsGoDigital

One thing is sure: a project that involves such technology can’t afford to lose sales because of an ugly design. We’d say it’s safe to assume that this shoe will look just as it will perform: excellent.

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