An Analytical Model to Predict Foot Sole Temperature: Implications to Insole Design for Physical Activity in Sport and Exercise

Abstract

Foot sole temperature, besides its importance in thermal comfort, can be considered an important factor in identifying tissue injuries due to heavy activities or diseases. Hyperthermia, which is a raise in the foot temperature, increases the risk of diabetic ulcers considerably. In this study, a model is proposed to predict the foot sole temperature with acceptable accuracy. This model for the first time considers both the thermal and mechanical properties of the shoe sole, the intensity of the activity, the ambient condition, and sweating, which are involved in the thermal interaction between the sole of the foot and footwear. Furthermore, the proposed model provides the opportunity to estimate the contributions of different parameters in foot thermal regulation by describing the interaction of activity, duration, and intensity as well as sweating in influencing the foot sole temperature. In doing so it takes into account the relative importance of heat capacitance and the thermal conductivity. The results of this study revealed that sweating is not as effective in cooling the ball area of the foot while it is the principal contributor to thermal regulation in the arch area. The model also showed the importance of trapped air in keeping the foot warm, especially in cold conditions. Based on the simulation results, in selecting the shoe sole, and in addition to the conductivity, the thermal capacity of the sole of the shoe needs to be considered. The developed analytical model allowed the investigation of the contribution of all the involved parameters in foot thermal regulation and has shown that a different foot temperature can be achieved when the amount of material versus air is changed in the insole design. This can have practical implications in the insole design for a variety of conditions such as hypo and hyper-thermia in physical activities in sports and exercise settings.