Abstract:

Product design integrating digital technology is a new trend in design education that has emerged due to the influence of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0). Indeed, in the footwear industry, the concept of wearable technology is attracting a lot of attention. Theoretical and practical research is both a description of an increasingly important trend and a basis for the development of industry 4.0 technology in this field. However, there is much ambiguity in this approach to footwear design and manufacture. This might interfere in the path of applying high technology, for both young designers at universities and stakeholders. The purpose of this paper is to present a study on applying wearable technology in footwear design and manufacturing through multiple cases analyses. The survey shows that the application of high technology in footwear design can stimulate the product-service system and user experience, in order to support footwear brands attract customers' attention, and bring high economic value for manufacturers and stakeholders. The results of this study demonstrate the benefits of wearable technology and how it has become an emerging trend in footwear design. Besides, there is much potential for applying technology to design products and services, as well as enhancing the role of design education in the digital era.

Keywords:

Footwear design, wearable technology, design education, industry 4.0 technology.