2. DOMINIC WILCOX HAS
CREATED A FULLY
FUNCTIONAL PROTOTYPE
PAIR OF SHOES THAT WILL
GUIDE THE WEARER TO ANY
DESTINATION, NO MATTER
WHERE THEY ARE IN THE
WORLD........
DOMINIC WELCOX
LEAD YOU HOME
When Dorothy clicked the heels
of her ruby slippers—or silver,
if you’re going by the book—
she was magically transported
home. When you click the heels
of Dominic Wilcox‘s bespoke No
Place Like Home shoes, they
show you the way home. These
handmade leather shoes are
outfitted with GPS technology
to point you in the right direction
and show how much progress
you’ve made. This artistic endeavor is a fun combination of wearable
technology and beautiful craftsmanship, all to help you correctly
navigate to anywhere in the world.
GPS-Enabled “Smart”
Shoes Keep Tabs on
Alzheimer’s Patients
3. The left shoe points in the desired direction, the right shoe
acts as a progress bar.
Connect the shoes to the laptop via USB. Plot on the map
where you wish to go and
press Upload to Shoe.
THE TECHNOLOGY
Wilcox was commissioned by
the Global Footprint project in
Northamptonshire to design and
create a pair of shoes. Thinking
about Dorothy’s famous shoes
in the Wizard of Oz that were
able to take her back home,
Wilcox also wanted to make a
pair of shoes that could lead you
anywhere you want. He named
the shoes, No Place Like Home,
and partnered with interactive
arts and technology expert Becky
Stewart and local Northampton
shoe maker Stamp Shoes to make
the custom shoes.
The two shoes work together to
provide information on direction
and distance to the wearer. The
left shoe is outfitted with GPS
technology and a ring of LED lights
on the toe, which show which direction the wearer should move.
Then the right shoe communicated
with the left wirelessly and shows
your progress through LEDs also
on the toe. Bright red tabs on the
heel operate as the antenna to
connect with the satellites. To operate the shoes, the wearer simply
types in the address via a computer portal and uploads the location to the shoes through a USB
connection. After putting the shoes
on, the wearer clicks their heels together to turn on the shoes, which
will start navigating you to your final
destination.
Just like Dorothy’s shoes, the No
Place Like Home shoes will get you
to where you need to be. Although
GPS SYSTEM
this was just a fun project integrating technology and bespoke
fashion, this sort of concept could
have real world applications for
those with who suffer from terrible
navigation skills.
