Future flooring follows your footsteps

10 February 2005

New intelligent flooring can feel your feet, follow your footsteps and raise the alarm if you fall over. Special sensors beneath the floor can even check that you are still breathing.

Antenna lifts up the lino to investigate...
Scientists have developed floors that feel.
'Tiny pressure detectors sandwiched between two layers of a floor tile can discreetly monitor movements in a room and feed back information to a remote computer.'
David Ross, engineering expert, Scottish Agricultural College

David Ross, engineering expert, Scottish Agricultural College

Who needs hi-tech tiles in their home?
'For older people the chances of a fall are high, so technologies which are non-intrusive but which will detect an accident and raise an alarm can be very reassuring both to themselves and their family.'
Mervyn Kohler, Help the Aged

Mervyn Kohler, Help the Aged

Image: Mervyn Kohler

Who goes there? The tiles make an ideal undercover security system. It can even analyse pressure patterns to tell whether an intruder is wearing soft-soled trainers or hobnail boots.

Image: PGA

By running on these hi-tech tiles, athletes such as long-jumpers could trace their footsteps - a useful training tool. And because the sensors record where weight is placed on each foot, golfers could adjust their balance to get that perfect swing.
'Understanding weight transference and movement of a player's centre of gravity are key considerations for a golf coach. We value the ongoing development of technology to further enhance our understanding of the golf swing and its underlying concepts.'
David Colclough, golf professional, PGA
.