"Google maps sneakers?" Shoes that guide wearers on their walking

These smart sneakers, proposed by UK budget airline EasyJet, are designed to guide the wearer around an unfamiliar city by using vibrations to indicate the direction in which they need to walk.

How cool can that be.

Dubbed “Sneakairs”, the shoes are equipped with built-in vibration sensors and, via Bluetooth, connect to an app that uses a smartphone’s GPS.

The shoes then guide wearers on their walking expedition by triggering small vibrations on either shoe, depending on the direction the wearer needs to turn to reach their destination.

“A ‘wrong turn’ detector and route recalculation functions have been incorporated so that if a user gets lost or voluntarily wishes to leave the route, it will be able to guide them back onto the right course towards their final destination,” the airline said in a press release.

A prototype of the shoe was recently tested on the streets of Barcelona by users who reportedly reached various landmarks successfully, including Gaudi’s Casa La Pedrera and Casa Batllo, without having to use a map.

The shoes themselves are still in the development stage and there is no word yet on when they’ll be available.

But an EasyJet spokesman told The Telegraph the shoes were “a versatile product built with components which can be used in almost any kind of footwear”.

“We believe this is an innovative product which can work in the real world,” he said.

“For this reason, we will keep working with our developers in order to turn this project into a reality.”

Via: News.com.au