Falls that kill elderly Britons can be stopped with smart shoes
SMART shoes are designed to prevent the elderly and infirm from potentially fatal falls.
Unobtrusive sensors are placed on everyday shoes to build an accurate picture of their movements.
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The data collected can be used to determine who is most likely to fall on the stairs.
Every year, more than 700 people die in such accidents and 43,000 people end up in hospital.
The technology is being trialled in three test houses by biomechanists from Liverpool John Moores University.
They hope to test it further in people's real homes.
The smart shoes focus on two crucial measurements: the distance from the toe to the edge of the step, and the part of the foot that rests safely on the top of the step.
Costis Maganaris, professor of musculoskeletal biomechanics at the university's School of Exercise and Sport Science, told Sensors magazine: “The end game is a product that can assess an individual's risk factor and alert them.
“The 'smart shoe' can provide us with very similar data to that obtained using motion recording in the walking laboratory.
“But it can also give us the ability to collect data remotely, which can be used to develop a prototype measuring instrument to predict stair falls.
“In general, we can prevent falls on the flat by improving strength and balance.
“Stairs are a different beast.”