A low-cost podoscope for extracting morphological features of the foot

Abstract

Foot morphology evaluation techniques are commonly used to evaluate foot abnormalities. The foot is essential for keeping the biomechanical performance of the lower extremities. It is responsible for the support of body balance and stability during gait. For the qualitative examination of foot morphology, many podoscopes have been designed. However, these podoscopes are mainly expensive, complex to operate, and have low accessibility. As a consequence the goal of this research was to create a simple, low-cost podoscope to assess the plantar footprint. In addition to providing a visual representation of the supporting regions. The proposed system enables accurate estimation of clinical indexes of foot deformities. With bare feet, bipedal support, and orthostatic posture, the participant was placed on the podoscope. Doom camera was used to capture the image of the plantar of the foot, and the data was sent to a computer via LAN connection. Based on image processing techniques, the proposed podoscope can automatically estimate the Arch Index, the Chippaux-Smirak Index, the Staheli Index, and Wejsflog's index.Ten samples were tested by the proposed podoscope, and the calculated parameters defining foot deformities are presented. The proposed podoscope appears to have the advantages of simplicity, being portable, inexpensive enabling rapid and precise footprint assessment with correct diagnoses, as well as a record for future assessments, and being economically viable in countries with people having low socio-economic status.