A Foot In the Embedded Systems Door

As you might imagine, a lot of news finds it way to the Dr. Dobb's mail queue. Some is interesting and pertinent and becomes the launching pad for one article or another. Other news is inappropriate and quickly finds its way to the digital trash can. And still other news is just, well, wacky. Like this:

The Isaac Daniel Group, a technology and design company, was recently awarded a U.S. patent for Covert Alarm Locator Apparatus -- a footwear-embedded GPS device. Embedded within the sole of a shoe and designed for crisis situations, the wearer can push a button on the outside of the footwear to activate the embedded GPS locating device to send a signal to a location-based service provider. The location-based service provider then pinpoints the wearer’s exact position with an accuracy of less than one yard and alerts authorities to the wearer’s location.

Okay, I did say the idea is wacky, but when you stop and think about it, it might be life-saving in instances where, say, Alzheimer’s patients or children wander off. Or perhaps those 11 Boy Scouts who recently spent the night in the woods could have been outfitted with GPS shoes. So I take back what I said about "wacky" and add it to the list of "gee, I wish I'd thought of that" things.

According to Issac Daniel, the footwear-enabled locating technology will first be embedded in an Isaac Daniel-designed hiking shoe which is planned to hit the market this holiday season. The adult line of shoes will be available in January 2008 to, with a children's line becoming available mid year.

In the meantime, I'll start working on appropriate puns, along the lines of "an embedded device with a small footprint" or "location and locomotion." Now it's your turn.

-- Jonathan Erickson
jerickson@ddj.com

Posted by Jon Erickson at 03:29 PM  Permalink