SBIR-STTR Award

Although footwear science has made considerable progress in the last decade, a performance gap continues to exist between standard issue military footwear and expedition footwear available on the commercial market. While the provision of in-shoe foot orthoses (ISFOs) is commonplace in commercial athletic and outdoor footwear, the provision of similar devices that can be accommodated in an army boot has not received significant attention. The high rates of lower extremity injuries in the military point to the urgent need to close the footwear performance gap by providing military personnel with footwear and in-boot orthoses that incorporate up-to-date biomechanical knowledge and state-of-the-art materials. In this proposal, DIApedia, LLC, a Pennsylvania small business with a track record of innovation and commercialization in the therapeutic footwear domain and experience with military contracts, will lead a multidisciplinary team of experts in composite materials, footwear biomechanics, military medicine, and manufacture of military footwear in the design of an advanced modular ISFO and a new high-performance boot container.

Keywords:
In-Shoe Foot Orthoses, Boot Housing, Composite Materials, Energy Storage And Return, Weight Reduction, Puncture Resistance, Off-Loading, High-Injury Risk

Although footwear science has made considerable progress in the last decade, a performance gap continues to exist between standard issue military footwear and expedition footwear available on the commercial market. While the provision of in-shoe foot orthoses (ISFOs) is commonplace in commercial athletic and outdoor footwear, the provision of similar devices that can be accommodated in an army boot has not received significant attention. The high rates of lower extremity injuries in the military point to the urgent need to close the footwear performance gap by providing military personnel with footwear and in-boot orthoses that incorporate up-to-date biomechanical knowledge and state-of-the-art materials. In the Phase I project, DIApedia, LLC, led a multidisciplinary team of experts in composite materials, footwear biomechanics, military medicine, and manufacture of military footwear in the design of an advanced modular ISFO and a new boot container assembly which includes a high performance energy storage and return element. This work provides a basis for a series of Phase 2 experimental studies aimed at validating the performance of the new footwear designs through human subject testing involving military personnel in a training environment.

Keywords:
in-shoe foot orthosis, boot housing, composite materials, energy storage and return, weight reduction, puncture resistance, off-loading, Lower Extremity Overuse Injury (LEOI)