3D foot shape generation from 2D information

Abstract

Two methods to generate an individual 3D foot shape from 2D information are proposed. A standard foot shape was first generated and then scaled based on known 2D information. In the first method, the foot outline and the foot height were used, and in the second, the foot outline and the foot profile were used. The models were developed using 40 participants and then validated using a different set of 40 participants. Results show that each individual foot shape can be predicted within a mean absolute error of 1.36 mm for the left foot and 1.37 mm for the right foot using the first method, and within a mean absolute error of 1.02 mm for the left foot and 1.02 mm for the right foot using the second method. The second method shows somewhat improved accuracy even though it requires two images. Both the methods are relatively cheaper than using a scanner to determine the 3D foot shape for custom footwear design.

Keywords:

• Mass customization
• Footwear
• Foot outline
• Fitting
• Foot shape modeling

Acknowledgements

The work described in this paper was supported by a grant from the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (Project No: HKUST 6162/02E) and the Hong Kong Polytechnic Research Office under the Postdoctoral Fellowship scheme.