SafeSteps
SafeSteps – Smart shoes for fair and friendly coexistence between vulnerable and non-vulnerable road users
A study project by Theresa Hußke
4th semester, 2024
Supervising lecturers: Sarah Antes, Romina Marsico and Tsunemitsu Tanaka
Mobility in urban areas
As part of this fourth-semester project, an in-depth analysis was carried out of contemporary mobility trends, including Mobility as a Service (MaaS), 15-minute cities, car-sharing and mobility hubs. The analysis found that, whilst these trends can contribute to positive developments in mobility, they do not necessarily minimise social interaction and, consequently, the associated risks on the roads.
As part of this project, the following question was addressed:
How can interaction between different road users in urban areas be shaped to improve co-existence on the roads and reduce accidents?
Vulnerable and non-vulnerable road users
In the course of the project, it became clear that it is not the type of road user alone that determines whether or not interaction takes place, but rather that the encounter between the two parties is significant.
It was found that, in such an encounter, there is always a stronger and a weaker party, which can lead to inequality and, consequently, to accidents.
The aim of the project has therefore emerged as empowering the more vulnerable road users to ‘see’ better, whilst at the same time enabling the stronger road users to be more aware of the more vulnerable ones.
Challenges on the roads
In principle, everyone needs to get from A to B safely whilst on the road. However, external and internal factors can quickly turn potentially dangerous situations into accidents. The advertising banner distracted the driver’s attention from the vehicle in front. A pedestrian crosses the road absent-mindedly.
A child playing is overlooked because the driver is completely exhausted.
If people were able to communicate with one another in these situations, the hazardous situations would be defused and would not result in a potential accident.
The basic idea behind the project
In order to enable both sides to be perceived on an equal footing, consideration was given to the senses – how people perceive traffic through the various channels of sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch.
It became apparent that both the senses of sight and hearing are already under considerable strain, whilst the senses of smell and taste are difficult to influence in a targeted manner; consequently, consideration was given to how the sense of touch could contribute to interaction within a media system.
Concept
As people have always used shoes to protect their feet from environmental factors such as temperature, wetness and injury, a concept has been developed that transforms this everyday item into a ‘smart object’ to promote interaction between people in traffic through haptic stimuli.
The SafeSteps system enables the prediction of potential hazards by connecting the shoes to one another. Vibrations in the shoe alert the wearer to approaching dangers, allowing them to react in good time. A brief vibration once the danger has passed is intended as a reminder to show a friendly gesture to the person opposite.
In the background, a calculation of the hazard situation is carried out with the support of artificial intelligence to ensure the most accurate predictions. The calculation takes place via a cloud-based system using collected GPS data, movement data such as speed and direction, and the type of road user.
Concept visualisation
You can see what the whole thing might look like in the product information video below. Enjoy watching my animated story!
Concept documentation
For a deeper insight into the process from initial idea to concept, the detailed documentation of the semester project is available as a PDF.
