A new smart insole co-developed by researchers at CDE aims to help identify and track workplace accidents and reduce the risks of employees being injured by slips, trips and falls.
The insole embedded with advanced pressure and motion sensors is the brainchild of a team led by Professor Lim Chwee Teck from the Department of Biomedical Engineering as well as the Institute for Health Innovation & Technology (iHealthtech).
Developed in collaboration with NUS start-up, FlexoSense, the smart insole can track workplace incidents in real-time and is the first of its kind that can detect a person's balance. The insole will allow companies to identify the location of an incident and pinpoint high-risk areas in order to implement suitable mitigation measures.
"Usually, slips, trips and falls are unreported. By deploying this smart insole solution in the workplace, companies can be proactive in mitigating these incidents," said Prof Lim.
"When a person encounters a slip, trip or fall, there will be unique changes in motion as well as pressure distribution exerted by the feet. Our smart insole captures the information automatically and, by tracking these changes, companies can identify high-risk areas in the workplace and implement preventive measures in a timely manner."
According to the International Labour Organization, more than a million workers globally are injured at work on a daily basis with slips, trips and falls (categorised as STFs) being the primary causes.
In industries such as construction, maritime, manufacturing, and transportation and storage, timely detection of STF risks is crucial in helping to enhance workplace health and safety.
The smart insole comprises pressure sensors to track foot pressure and an inertial sensor to measure changes in motion.
When a slip, trip or fall occurs, the body will initially try to maintain balance by exerting pressure on the feet. The smart insole can pick up these unique changes in pressure and a person's orientation to determine if an incident has occurred. Such changes in foot pressure and motion are then recorded and measured in real-time to generate balance profiles of different users, which could help in assessing the deployment of workers for various tasks.
Falls from height can also be detected by the insole's sensors as such incidents have distinct velocity profiles compared to falls on level ground.
"STFs are significant cost drivers for most companies due to a loss of productivity, medical expenses and administrative costs," said Ms Chia Lye Peng, Chief Executive Officer of FlexoSense. "We believe our smart insole can help to reduce the human and financial costs before serious accidents happen."
Information gathered from the smart insole can be easily accessed by workers through a mobile application and by company management via a dashboard.
This digitalisation of workplace incidents provides timely reporting and greater transparency, instead of relying on workers or safety officers to file manual reports. Over time, the data collected from the smart insoles, along with other worker-related metrics, can be used to implement best workplace practices on safety and health.
The insole can also be custom fitted where necessary via foot scanning and 3D printing production.
In addition to monitoring and reporting STFs, the smart insole recognises daily activities including walking, standing, and sitting, allowing managers to identify potential risky actions such as when a worker should be walking rather than running, and to measure centres of pressure to assess each worker's sense of balance.
The research team behind the smart insole were awarded the Maritime Innovation and Technology-STARTUP Grant by the Maritime Port Authority of Singapore in May 2022 for prototype development and test-bedding. They are collaborating with the Workplace Safety and Health Institute and Association of Singapore Maritime Industries to enhance and tweak the smart insole for the maritime sector.
Additionally, the team is looking into future applications and commercialisation of the smart insole to mitigate STFs in construction, aviation, manufacturing and other industries.
