Vibrating insoles for remote neurological monitoring and balance enhancement (Phase I)

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Reduced foot sole skin sensitivity is associated with an increased risk of falling in older adults and diabetic peripheral neuropathy patients. Given this, the ability to perform remote skin sensitivity tests through vibrating 'smart insole' technologies would represent a major advance in patient monitoring and potential healthcare cost savings. Vibrating insoles will provide a more efficient and precise alternative to manual testing methods used in the clinic today. Users could perform remote testing on a weekly or even daily basis, providing an unprecedented frequency of neurological data for clinicians, while empowering patients to become agents of their own healthcare. Beyond neurological monitoring, vibrating insoles can be combined with other existing wearable sensors that measure balance performance (e.g., pressure-sensing insoles or head-mounted accelerometers) within a closed-loop control system to provide real-time sensory feedback enhancement for the user. For example, if the plantar pressure distribution shifts onto the heels, vibrators under the heels become activated, leading to increased perceptual awareness of plantar pressure and a reflexive postural response that brings the body forward. Due to a design flaw, however, the only existing vibrating insoles are not effective at stimulating the foot sole with perceptible vibrations when users stand on them with full body weight. To circumvent this, I propose to develop vibrating insole compartments which can bear the weight of the body and provide a pocket for the motors to continue moving and emitting vibrations. Furthermore, my design couples each vibrating motor with a nearby accelerometer for real-time feedback and calibration of stimulation amplitudes and frequencies. This Idea-to-Innovation grant will support the further development and translation of these vibrating insole technologies to fully realize their commercial potential.