A product design on slippers for pes planus or flat footed individuals

• Main Authors: Go, Jason D., Que, Christian P., Siy, Floyd C.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2012
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/12111
• Institution: De La Salle University

Flat feet is explained as the lack of arch in a person’s foot area. The arch of the foot is an important part of the human body since it constitutes as the shock absorber during gait. With the lack of arch support due to being flat footed, research shows that different symptoms such as pain and discomfort can be experienced. The objective of the study is to create a slipper prototype where the symptoms of flat feet would be alleviated. To do this, support in various areas of the foot such as the forefoot and the heel are considered into the design. The level of foot pronation should also be lessened and plantar pressures should also be equally distributed in the foot are while wearing the slipper. Considering the VOC, negative performance gap scores were found out of therapeutic support, comfort, durability and fitting. Their scores were -1.5333, -1.0528, -0.3528 respectively. Because of these gaps, three alternatives were generated. The first alternative made use of a 3-degree wedge which corrects excessive pronation. A 5mm arch lift was also added to provide necessary support. The second alternative used of the same design, but an extra heel height of 8mm was added. Lastly, the third alternative made use of a metatarsal pad. To test the prototypes, flat footed individuals were invited for the experiment. First, subjects walked on a force plate to measure foot pressure as well as pressure distribution across their feet. Second, pronation was measured and evaluated using the Foot Posture Index where a score of zero shows no pronation, while the higher the number, the worse the pronation is. After compiling the results, statistical analysis was done. Decision analysis was also used in order to choose the most effective product among all three alternatives. In the end, the second alternative with the additional heel height was chosen as the best product because it showed the best improvement in peak pressures, pressure distribution, and pronation levels.