Method and apparatus for analyzing feet

• US 5,361,133 A
• Filed: 06/23/1992
• Issued: 11/01/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Footmarks, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Footmarks, Inc.
• Inventors: Williams, David M., Dabbs, James M. III, Welty, Carl T., Brown, Algie C., Williams, Henry G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Rosenberger, Richard A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pham, Hoa Q.
• Application Number:
  US07/903,017
• Time in Patent Office: 861 Days
• Field of Search: 356/372, 356/376, 356/379, 356/383, 356/384, 33/3, 12/146, 73/172, 73/765, 364/550, 364/558, 364/561
• US Class Current: 356/612
• CPC Class Codes: A43D 1/025 comprising optical means, e.g. mirrors, photo-electric cells, for measuring or inspecting feet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1036 Measuring load distribution, e.g. podologic studies
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1074 Foot measuring devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7445 Display arrangements, e.g. multiple display units

Abstract

A method and apparatus for measuring feet for fitting shoes which utilizes matrixes of pressures sensors and optical sensors connected to a controller and a monitor. An apparatus of the invention includes a housing which houses a controller and a monitor and defines left and right foot wells for receiving left and right feet, respectively. The floor of each foot well includes a pressure pad assembly which includes a matrix of pressure sensor contacts covered by a variably resistive pressure pad to form pressure sensor matrixes. A digital signal processor normalizes and smooths the pressure data for display on the monitor. Infrared LED'"'"'s and phototransistors are located around the perimeter of each foot well and are utilized to measure the length, width, and heights of a foot. A microprocessor addresses each LED and phototransistor separately. The controller reads data created by the DSP and IR microprocessor, calculates additional data, and displays the resulting data on the monitor. The pressure sensors and optical sensors are utilized to determine, among others, foot length, foot width, shoe size, foot volume, foot shape, force distribution, pronation, arch type, and recommended last type. Such determinations, along with intended use information obtained from the customer, are compared to a database of available shoes to determine recommended best fits for each customer. Such data can also be stored or transferred to an external system for storage with reference to each particular customer.

Claims

1. A shoe fitting apparatus comprising:

a pressure means for the generating a plurality of foot pressure signals, wherein said pressure means includes, at least, a pressure sensitive pad means for supporting a customer, said pressure sensitive pad means including, at least, a matrix of pressure sensors;

an optical means for generating foot dimension signals including, at least, foot length, foot width, and foot height signals, wherein said optical means includes, at least,

a first plurality of optical emitters arranged in a first linear pattern,

a first plurality of optical receivers arranged to receive optical signals from said first plurality of optical emitters,

a second plurality of optical emitters arranged in a second linear pattern perpendicular to said first linear pattern,

a second plurality of optical receivers arranged to receive optical signals from said second plurality of optical emitters,

a third plurality of optical emitters arranged in a matrix pattern located above said first and second linear patterns, and

a third plurality of optical receivers arranged to receive optical signals from said third plurality of optical emitters; and

a controller means for receiving said foot pressure signals and said foot dimension signals and for generating and displaying show size information.

2. An apparatus for measuring and analyzing a pair of feet, said apparatus comprising:

a frame structure defining a left foot well and an adjacently located right foot well, said frame structure including, at least,

a left well floor surface bounding a bottom of said left foot well,

a right well floor surface bounding a bottom of said right foot well,

a left well front wall surface extending perpendicularly up from said left well floor surface and bounding a front side of said left foot well,

a right well front wall surface extending perpendicularly up from said right well floor surface and bounding a front side of said right foot well,

a left well rear wall surface extending perpendicularly up from said left well floor surface and bounding a rear side of said left foot well,

a right well rear wall surface extending perpendicularly up from said right well floor surface and bounding a rear side of said right foot well,

a left well outer wall surface extending perpendicularly up from said left well floor surface and bounding an outer side of said left foot well,

a right well outer wall surface extending perpendicularly up from said right well floor surface and bounding an outer side of said right foot well,

a left well inner wall surface extending perpendicularly up from said left well floor surface and bounding an inner side of said left foot well, and

a right well inner wall surface extending perpendicularly up from said right well floor surface and bounding an inner side of said right foot well;

a pressure system connected to said frame structure including, at least,

a plurality of pressure sensors including, at least,

a left well matrix of pressure sensors including, at least,

a left well contact layer including, at least, a plurality of open sensor contacts arranged as a planar matrix covering said left well floor surface, and

a left well pressure-sensitive, variably resistive layer covering said left well contact layer,

a right well matrix of pressure sensors including, at least,

a right well contact layer including, at least, a plurality of open sensor contacts arranged as a planar matrix covering said right well floor surface, and

a right well pressure-sensitive, variably resistive layer covering said right well contact layer,

a voltage supply means for continually supplying voltage to at least one pressure sensor of said plurality of pressure sensors,

a current detection means for continually and sequentially detecting current flowing through each pressure sensor of said plurality of pressure sensors and for generating output signals representative of current flowing through each pressure sensor of said plurality of pressure sensors, and

a pressure processing means coupled to said voltage supply means and said current detection means for controlling the continual and sequential operation of said plurality of pressure sensors and continually converting said output signals from said current detection means into pressure data representative of pressure applied to said plurality of pressure sensors;

an optical system connected to said frame structure including, at least,

a left well length plurality of optical emitters extending along one of said left well inner wall surface and said left well outer wall surface, an opposing left well length plurality of optical receivers extending along the other of said left well inner wall surface and said left well outer wall surface,

a left well height plurality of optical emitters extending up one of said left well inner wall surface and said left well outer wall surface, an opposing left well height plurality of optical receivers extending up the other of said left well inner wall surface and said left well outer wall surface,

a left well width plurality of optical emitters extending along one of said left well front wall surface and said left well rear wall surface, an opposing left well width plurality of optical receivers extending along the other of said left well front wall surface and said left well rear wall surface,

a right well length plurality of optical emitters extending along one of said right well inner wall surface and said right well outer wall surface, an opposing right well length plurality of optical receivers extending along the other of said right well inner wall surface and said right well outer wall surface,

a right well height plurality of optical emitters extending up one of said right well inner wall surface and said right well outer wall surface, an opposing right well height plurality of optical receivers extending up the other of said right well inner wall surface and said right well outer wall surface,

a right well width plurality of optical emitters extending along one of said right well front wall surface and said right well rear wall surface, an opposing right well width plurality of optical receivers extending along the other of said right well front wall surface and said right well rear wall surface, and

an optical processing means coupled to said pluralities of optical emitters and receivers for controllably causing said pluralities of optical emitters to emit optical signals and causing said pluralities of receivers to generate electrical signals representative of optical signals received by said pluralities of optical emitters, and for generating, based on said electrical signals received from said pluralities of optical receivers, optical data representative of detected edges of any feet substantially randomly located within said left well and said right well, said detected edges including a left well outer edge, a left well inner edge, a left well front edge, a left well rear edge, a left well upper edge, a right well outer edge, a right well inner edge, a right well front edge, a right well rear edge, and a right well upper edge; and

a controller connected to said frame structure and coupled to said pressure processing means and said optical processing means, said controller including, at least,

a controller processor means for receiving said pressure data from said pressure processing means and said optical data from said optical processing means and for calculating foot measurement data including, at least, length, width, height, and volume data for left and right feet based at least upon said optical data from said optical processing means, and

a graphical display means coupled to said controller processor means for displaying portions of said foot measurement data and said pressure data.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said controller processor means includes, at least, adjustment means for accommodating angled feet by utilizing said pressure data to adjust said foot measurement data to calculate adjusted length and adjusted width data.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said adjustment means includes, at least, means for calculating foot angle data based upon said pressure data.

5. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said pressure processing means further includes, at least, video normalizing means for generating normalized pressure video data for input directly to said graphical display means.

6. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said optical processing means further includes, at least, tracking means for continually dithering back and forth around detected edges.

7. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said controller processor means utilizes said length, width, height, and volume data to calculate a shoe size for each foot within said left and right wells.

8. An apparatus for measuring at least one foot, said apparatus comprising:

a plurality of optical sensors arranged to define a sensing area for receipt of a foot;

an optical directing means for causing said plurality of optical sensors to employ optical signals to locate front, rear, left, and right edges of a foot substantially randomly located within said sensing area and for generating optical data representing located edges of the foot; and

a controller means for receiving said optical data and for calculating and displaying foot measurement data including, at least, length and width data,

wherein said plurality of optical sensors includes, at least, a matrix of vertically arranged optical sensors, and wherein said optical directing means causes said matrix of sensors to employ optical signals to locate, at least, a first height of a foot at a base of a leg and a second height of a foot at a second location nearer front of the foot.