A new frontier in footwear comfort
PPS tactile sensing quantifies what the foot actually feels
Tactile sensing specialist PPS has released a case study detailing its six-year collaboration with footwear specialist Heeluxe, which shows how tactile sensing has been used to eliminate poorly fitting footwear. The study examines the development of SmartLast, an automated system that quantifies true human shoe-fit perception through precision contact data rather than subjective feeling. It establishes a more reliable foundation for comfort and performance and marks a shift toward footwear design grounded in measurable interaction rather than subjective surveys.
For generations, shoe fit has been treated as a simple matter of size. Yet, athletes and everyday users have long experienced strain when footwear fails to align with foot mechanics.
This study highlights a shift for an industry that has always wanted objectivity but lacked the tools to quantify the physical experience of wearing a shoe.
Heeluxe approached PPS with the task of measuring pressure peaks, slipping or localised tightness with the same fidelity as people feel them. This initiated a multi-year collaboration that produced SmartLast, an automated system capable of modelling human perception with repeatability at production speed. The system captures fine variations in pressure distribution and reveals the interaction between upper materials and human anatomy in a way that conventional evaluation never achieved.
“Our primary goal has always been comfort and PPS helped us turn that goal into a measurable property rather than an impression, which changed the scale and speed at which fit can be understood. PPS brought the precision and consistency required to build a system that mirrors what people sense when they put on a shoe. That alignment allowed us to move from an idea to a tool that changes how the industry understands fit.” added Dr. Geoffrey Gray, Founder and Biomechanics Director at Heeluxe.
The technology creates a pathway for brands to refine comfort in line with how real feet respond under load; providing detail that informs decisions on structure, materials and construction. SmartLast reduces the time needed for evaluation from weeks to seconds, allowing global brands to develop more consistent models that retain the fit characteristics valued by its users. Heeluxe has already expanded the approach into a large database that gives developers a frame of reference across categories and regions.
“Tactile sensing allows designers to see how a product behaves against the body with a level of clarity that was not possible in the past,” explains Dr. Jae Son Founder and Chief Executive Officer at PPS.
“It brings engineering discipline to a part of footwear development that once depended on subjective user feedback. That shift creates new opportunities for comfort and performance because decisions can now rely on measurable interaction rather than subjective feel.”