The Fidget Shoe aims to help children who are dealing with various mental disorders specifically, giving them a fidget tool and/or distraction to help them cope. There are many different mental health issues, and all have serious impacts on people and make it harder to go about day-to-day life. Sensory processing disorders or ADHD are prevalent diagnoses, whether primary or coexisting with other mental health diagnoses. Both Associations for Children’s Mental Health and MentalHealth.gov provide research that shows that only 40% of students with mental health disorders graduate from high school, compared to the usual 76%. That is usually credited to the classroom environment making it harder to learn compared to other kids. The Fidget Shoe project was designed keeping this in mind. It is a customizable, slip-on sneaker that can change color and has multiple buttons and straps to press, squeeze, pull, and twist while learning.

PROJECT STATEMENT

Kayla Brunner

• Kayla is eight-years-old and goes to a fancy private school on a scholarship. Because of that, she feels like she doesn't fit in among her other rich classmates - especially with her low-quality clothes. She needs a shoe to boost her confidence

• Kayla has ADHD (which means she has trouble sitting still for periods of time and listening) and as a result, is always fidgeting. It's hard for her to listen and sit still. She needs a shoe that allows her to fidget quietly.

• Kayla also has Sensory Processing Disorder (which means she's more sensitive to light, colors, textures, sound, etc.) which makes it hard for her to in school. Also, as a result of her SPD, she is extremely clumsy. She needs a slip-in shoe that is extremely comfortable.

• Kayla is a daredevil that loves to run, climb, and play. She needs a durable, long-lasting shoe for all the adventures she gets into

There are many different types of mental health issues, all making it harder for day-to-day life. Mental health issues can be caused by genetics, stress, harassment or bullying, trauma, substance abuse, and more. Mental Health Issues are serious and real. 1 in 5 adults in America experiences a mental illness, and more than 50% percent of America's population has been diagnosed with various mental disorders. Children also suffer, some arguably worse than adults. Most school truancy comes from students with mental health disorders. In some ways, mental illnesses are worse than cancer. Your brain is against you, telling you lies and you can't help but believe it. With a mental illness, you are fighting against your body and mind. The Fidget Shoe is designed to help children in school deal with mental illnesses and raise awareness of the issue.

Overview of Condition

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DESIGN REQUIREMENTS

Precedents

FIDGET TOYS:

The Fidget Shoe will have miniature fidget toys embedded in the sole of the shoe

CROC CHARMES:

The Fidget Shoe will have miniature fidget toys embedded in the sole of the shoe, and the toys can be replaced with new ones - much like Croc Charmes.

TEAR AWAY:

The Fidget Shoe will have velcro fabric that you can rip away and replace, effectively making the shoe able to change color

DESIGN SKETCHES

MORE DESIGN SKETCHES

FINAL SKETCH



SECOND PROTOTYPE

FINAL PROTOTYPES

THIRD PROTOTYPE

Overview

The Fidget Shoe is a slip-in, durable, long-lasting, stylish, color-changing, comfortable shoe that has fidget toys attached to the shoe to play with if you ever feel bored.

Consumer: Young school children - from kindergarten to at least middle school. Specifically children with mental health issues, though not a requirement

Technology: There will be no technology in the shoe, however, you can always easily dismantle and then reassemble The Fidget Shoe, adding tech as you please

Business: This could be a very lucrative market. Shoes are already a decent amount of money, and although fidget toys are cheap, they still stack up more money. Also, young children can replace the fidget toys embedded in the sole with other ones, or some charms that could be sold along with the shoe.

My Next Steps

• Experiment with more prototypes and materials

• Think more about the cost and how to make the shoe more cost-efficient.

• Do more research; such as meeting kids with various mental health issues

• Pursue materials and fabrics to use

“Viper Shoe” is a shoe specifically designed for ankle support and max movement on the court. The goal of the shoe is to prevent ankle sprains for kids who play basketball, but might not have shoes with proper support to prevent injuries. Studies show that low-top shoes don’t provide enough support, and more ankle injuries happen while players are wearing them. “Viper Shoe” is made with extra ankle support, an adjustable fastener, and a flexible sole to prevent injury.

The main concern for most basketball players is rolled ankles, sprained ankles, and just foot injuries in general. With The “Viper Shoe”, clients won't need to worry about spraining their ankles, since the shoes is designed to prevent injuries in ankles.

Thesis

Name: Rocco

Age: 14

Occupation: Student

Location:

Info

Frustrations

• No good looking shoes
• There are no shoes that give comfort and ankle support as well as durability.

• Comfort
• Ankle support
• Durability
• Style

Expectation & Needs

Bio

Rocco likes to play basketball, but he rolls and sprains his ankles a lot. He needs a shoe that can prevent him from being injured and keep him on the court.

A sprained ankle is an injury that occurs when you roll, twist or turn your ankle in an awkward way, normally to the inside.

This can tear or stretch the ligaments that hold your ankles together.

Ligaments help stabilize joints, preventing excessive movement.

A sprained ankle occurs when the ligaments are stretched beyond their natural range of motion.

Overview of Condition

"Sprained Ankle - Symptoms And Causes". Mayo Clinic, 2022, https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/sprained-ankle/symptoms-causes/syc-20353225. Accessed 18 Oct 2022.

Design Features

• Ankle support
• Offers more support and limits extra room
• Flexible sole
• Won't restrict movement and production on the field/court
• A lot of cushion in the sole
• Support and comfort for the foot

Precedents

SCALED, Natalie Kerres:

We used scales, inspired by these to create the mechanism on our shoe.

Armor1 Ankle Roll Guard:

We created extra support along the inside of the sole, and we used this as inspiration

Design Sketches

Sole prototype

Prototype

Biomimicry

Prototype

Final Design

Thesis

When your own body sees its tissues as foreign material and attacks them to the point where they deteriorate, you develop a condition known as Lupus, or formally SLE (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus). Damage caused by bone mineralization which deteriorates the bones can create issues in the foot and even lead to other conditions including osteoporosis and osteoarthritis. With 1.5 million people affected globally according to the Lupus Foundation of America*, our solution is to provide a shoe that not only protects the foot, but provides adequate support and quality of life features. The goal is to aid active people suffering with lupus in leading a fulfilling, active life without worrying about fractures.

Name: Kara

Age:15

Occupation: Student

Location:Switzerland

Info

Frustrations

• She participates in physical activities with her classmates
• She can't go on hikes or experience the outdoors in the same way she used to.

• A shoe that can support and cushion her foot.
• A shoe that can reduce the impact on her feet when she walks.

Expectation & Needs

Bio

Kara is 15 years old. She lives in Switzerland. She loves to hike and spend time outdoors. Kara loves to spend time specifically in the mountains and great lakes of Switzerland. Kara got diagnosed with PSLE when she was 14 years old. She tried to continue with her way of life but Lupus kept her from that. Despite all of this, Kara still wants to live a normal, active life.

Lupus is a condition that affects over 1.5 million people in the US alone. However, it is much more sever in kids. Since they have not fully grown the tissue is much more vulnerable to attack. This is especially prevalent in bone density. Which is why we chose to focus on fractures.

Overview of Condition

Design features

• Heavy cushioning, providing comfort, lessening the risk of injuries
• Impact reduction with springs
• A sole designed to form fit and support the foot.

Precedents

Cubedesigners

We were inspired by the way that they reduced the impact caused by running.

Med Spec ASO

We were inspired by the way the Velcro straps were used and incorporated it into our own Velcro strap design

Design Sketches

Prototype V1

Technical Drawings

Diagrams

Early photos of the sole

Final Prototype

Final Design

Next Steps

-Most likely change the Velcro straps and replace them with shoe laces

-We would change some of the materials to make them lighter as our final result wasn't extremely lightweight

-Make the shoe slimmer and less clunky

Thank You for Listening

https://www.lupus.org/resources/lupus-and-children

TOPIC SUMMERY

Mental Health Issues are serious and real. 1 in 5 adults in America experiences a mental illness, and more than 50% percent of America's population has been diagnosed with various mental disorders. Children also suffer, some arguably worse than adults. Most school truancy comes from students with mental health disorders. The Fidget Shoes are designed to help children in school dealing with mental illnesses

For my project, I wanted to create a shoe that can help kids with these kinds of mental health issues - A Fidget Shoe - and help raise awareness of these mental health issues

RELATIONSHIPS TO FOOTWEAR

Many people know that the wrong pair of shoes can result in misery. Multiple studies have found colors and textures actually can affect your mood, and that is certainly true for children with mental health issues. People with a mental disorder, like Sensory Processing Disorder, for example (which is at least 21% percent of the population), can have trouble trying their shoes, are clumsy, have a hard time paying attention, and more. Footwear is defiantly a big part of this. If shoes and clothing, in general, are very uncomfortable, a child will be so as well.

Also, my shoe doesn't just have to be limited for children with SPD. Lots of people are on the spectrum, have various mental health problems, and have trouble focusing. The Fidget Shoe can also help raise awareness of the issues that everyday people have to burden.

LIFESTYLE

AFFECTS

• Thinks clothing feels to scratchy or itchy
• Significant tiredness
• Low energy
• Problems sleeping
• Don't want to go to school
• Fidgets often
• Feels anxious often
• Feeling hopeless
• Every task feels incredibly hard
• Reacts poorly to sudden movements, touches, loud noises, or bright lights.
• Having sudden and random mood swingsLights seem too bright.

Please note, this is across the board; I tried to have this list cover many mental health issues, not just one. Also, this does not mean all people with mental health issues feel these or feel all of these symptoms. Even if you have only one of these issues, it's still valid!

• Sounds seem too loud.
• Doesn't understand personal space when peers understand it.
• Clumsy and uncoordinated movements.

Here is a list of some everyday issues people with various mental health disorders run into:

• Think soft touches feel too hard.
• Experience food textures make them gag.
• Have poor balance or seem clumsy.
• A constant need to touch people or textures,

even when it's inappropriate to do so.

• Extremely high or low pain tolerance
• React poorly to sudden movements, touches, loud noises, or bright lights.
• Have behavior problems.

CURRENT SOLUTIONS

Fidget shoes! Shoes that can change colors, and that are comfortable, easier to get on, personalized, and stylish. There are already shoes for people (specifically children) with mental health issues that come in muted colors and are simple slip-on shoes for children who can't focus well.

CURRENT SOLUTION ANALYSIS

There are three current problems with the Fidget Shoe, durability, noise, and price. The first issue is durability - not with the shoe itself, but with the fidget toys attached to it. Sooner or later, they might break. A solution I've come up with is this; make every fidget toy I can in the Fidget Shoe removable, so you can replace them and put new and different fidget toys in. That way, you can have a wide variety!

For noise, some fidget toys cause noise and matter no matter how small, every noise can feel loud when a teacher is talking. Because of this, I need to make sure the Fidget Shoe would be as silent as possible.

The final problem is price. A shoe costs a decent amount of money. A fidget toy is much cheaper, but either way, the prices are stacked together. In order to change this, I would need to use cheaper materials, but that would lessen it's lifespan. It's an endless loop

IMAGINED SCENARIO

GOALS:

Imagine you are an elementary schooler with a mental health issue, such as ADHD or Sensory Processing Disorder, forced to sit through hours of teachers talking. Everything around you feels too bright, too loud, and your shoes feel so itchy and uncomfortable. You want some sort of fidget tool and you want to feel comfortable, so you get cool, fidget shoes you can personalize and make sure are perfect for you.

Students are better behaved with less fidgeting and can listen better, which in turn will let them do better on tests. Doing better on tests and succeeding in school will make them feel accomplished. And seeing how they do much better in school, these children won't be dreading going to school anymore, which in turn would reduce the rates of school refusal.

SKETCHES

USE DIAGRAM



Project Statement

Our goal is to minimize children's exposure to pesticides therefor reducing illness in organs as well as neurological issues by making a cheap and protective shoe.

User Persona

 .. She and her family are from Mexico and moved to Texas.

. All the people on the farm that are farmers are treated unfairly.

. She loves sports

Contact to pesticides either through inhalation or skin contact can cause serious illness and growth defects in children. Pesticide contact has also been linked to neurological disorders like AD-HD.

Overview of Condition

Design Requirements

Our shoe must be able to protect children from skin contact with pesticides while still facilitating use in heat. We also need our shoe to be affordable enough to be replaced as a child grows to ensure even impoverished groups can use them .

Design Sketches

Prototype V1

Silica Gel

Foot Interface

Next Steps

• Test moisture management systems
• Design foot interface with the moisture management system
• Design the top of the boot

Lupus is a disease when your body's immune system attacks your own tissues. It can also cause severe bone damage causing foot injuries to be very common. Our way of helping this is by designing a shoe that has insole protection to reduce damage caused by Lupus.

Thesis

User Persona

Kara is an 11-year-old girl diagnosed with Lupus at the age of 7. Her favorite color is pink and she loves to watch TV. Her main frustration is that because of her condition, her shoes aren't giving her the support she needs, to have an active life.

Lupus is a non-contagious disease that causes the body immune system to attack the rest of the body. It will do this by causing rashes, damaging joints, and tearing away muscle tissue and bone density.

Overview of Condition

Design Features

Our shoe is designed to be a spacious fit with cushions strategically placed around the shoe. The design of our sole has been made to form around the foot providing better support during large swinging movements. We have aslo designed a system called the Impact reduction system. It uses a sliding mechanism to ease pain and lower the risk of injury during her daily life.

Design Sketches

Impact reduction system

Prototype V1

Next Steps

Our next step is to make our final design. We will first research different soles, cushions, and, outer materials. Then we will move on to the finalization and construction of the impact reduction system.

Inspiration

This is aimed at Belgian children roughly between ages of 8-13. We will be making cheap shoes sustain the ability to help infections heal. This will also used to help manage diabetic infections and help them heal. Our goal is to stop the need for amputation from diabetic foot.

Project Statement

Gasmin Claes

• Gasmin works two jobs on in the day and one in the night. Gasmin has to feed her two children with all of the money she makes from these jobs and doesn't have much left over.

• Gasmin has diabetic foot and can't find any shoes in her price range that can help this.

• Gasmin needs her feet to work and having to amputate them would cost a lot and would stop her from working.

 Diabetic Foot can affect your foot in many ways, and cause a variety of problems in your foot. You can experience loss of feeling in your foot which can make it hard to know if there is a cut or blister in your foot. A wound that you are unaware of is very easily infected. Diabetic foot can sometimes get so bad that you have to amputate your foot.

Overview of Condition

Design Requirements

We want a shoe that is cheap, comfortable for someone with diabetic foot, and has good aesthetics.

Design Sketches

Prototype V1

Next Steps



• We are going to rebuild the prototype using cardboard so it is stronger.

• We want to add the straps that hold onto the leg so that less pressure is put on the foot

• We want to build the shoes using a a small amount of big parts so it takes less time to create.

• We want to find out what the material for the real show should be and represent them using lo fi materials.

The Survival Shoe is an ultra-durable shoe designed to give Ukrainian children living on the front lines of war useful tools and peace of mind. Survival Shoe is designed to withstand harsh conditions and be comfortable for the user while still being attractive for everyday use. The shoe will be made out of a few long-lasting materials to keep the price down without sacrificing any practicality. 

Project Statement

There are children in Ukraine, especially near the front lines, that have to traverse difficult rubble-filled areas with broken concrete and ice. It can can get very cold in Ukraine and with no power especially over the winter. As it is a war zone, people may need to evacuate at any time and need to be prepared for that situation.

Overview of Situation

User Persona

• Sergey wants to help their country fight against Russia.

• They are very stressed about the war and how they can help.

• Sergey needs to have critical supplies and comfort, both for themself and their family.

Design Requirements

• The shoe needs to be very durable
• The sole has to have traction and be grippy
• It needs to be easily mass produced at a low cost
• It needs to also be comfortable for the user
• It should be easily accessible to anyone that needs it

Precedents

Traction Tred Sole/Baxter and Black:

This sole heavily inspired our own. It provides grippiness while still fitting with the geometric design of the shoe.

Indestructible Shoes

These shoes are steel-toed with high endurance, but the outer materials make them look like stylish sneakers.

Metal Detecting Sandals/Hammacher Schlemmer:

These are sandals that can detect metal as you walk. We would like to integrate this into our shoe so it could warn children of explosives.

Design Sketches

Design Sketches

Prototype

Render

Final Design

Final Design

Final Design

Shoe Construction

put on tab

easy strap clips

nylon webbing

steel toe is located under the fabric on the front of the shoe

extra grippy notch portions

Next Steps

1. We would come up with a cheap way to produce and send these shoes to Ukraine.
2. We would refine the outer layer of fabric and narrow the usage of material as much as possible.
3. We would come up with a good joining technique between the materials.