Identifying areas in the sole of the foot which are routinely overloaded during daily living is extremely important for the management of the diabetic foot. This work showcases the feasibility of reliably detecting overloading using a low-cost non-electronic technique. This technique uses thin-wall structures that change their properties differently when they are repeatedly loaded above or below a tuneable threshold. Flexible hexagonal thin-wall structures were produced using three-dimensional printing, and their mechanical behaviour was assessed before and after repetitive loading at different magnitudes. These structures had an elastic mechanical behaviour until a critical pressure (P_crit = 252 kPa ± 17 kPa) beyond which they buckled. Assessing changes in stiffness after simulated use enabled the accurate detection of whether a sample was loaded above or below P_crit (sensitivity = 100%, specificity = 100%), with the overloaded samples becoming significantly softer. No specific P_crit value was targeted in this study. However, finite-element modelling showed that P_crit can be easily raised or lowered, through simple geometrical modifications, to become aligned with established thresholds for overloading (e.g. 200 kPa) or to assess overloading thresholds on a patient-specific basis. Although further research is needed, the results of this study indicate that clinically relevant overloading could indeed be reliably detected without the use of complex electronic in-shoe sensors.

识别在日常生活中经常超负荷的脚底区域对于糖尿病足的管理极为重要。这项工作展示了使用低成本非电子技术可靠检测过载的可行性。这种技术使用薄壁结构，当它们重复加载高于或低于可调阈值时，它们的属性会发生不同的变化。使用 3D 打印制作了柔性六边形薄壁结构，并在不同量级的重复加载前后评估了它们的机械性能。这些结构在达到临界压力（P _crit= 252 kPa ± 17 kPa)，超过该压力时它们会弯曲。模拟使用后评估刚度的变化能够准确检测样品是否加载高于或低于P _crit（灵敏度 = 100%，特异性 = 100%），而过载的样品变得明显更软。没有具体P_暴击值在这项研究的目标。然而，有限元建模表明P _crit可以通过简单的几何修改轻松升高或降低，以符合既定的超载阈值（例如 200 kPa），或根据患者特定的基础评估超载阈值。尽管需要进一步研究，但这项研究的结果表明，确实可以在不使用复杂的电子鞋内传感器的情况下可靠地检测到临床相关的超载。