Kromicks | Thermochromic Kicks

Concept

Shoes that change color when you reach your target intensity zone. More change means more activity and more intensity!

There is no denying that shoe culture is bigger and better than ever. The big basketball shoe is definitely back for the attack. The Nike Air Force One collection is worn by rappers and hipsters alike, and having one pair just doesn’t do the trick. The louder/crazier the color scheme, the better. Of course, the problem with this sort of consumerism is the tremendous waste created by people owning pairs upon pairs of kicks. This got me thinking about creating a single shoe which could take on different color schemes based upon your current aesthetic preference. Why not have a a shoe which can go from business to party and back again? In certain ways, this has been attempted before through the LA Lights collection, and it is still somewhat popular among young children. The problem with LEDs as the mechanism for change is the loss of the traditional look and feel of a sneaker. LEDs are still too space-agey for shoes and cannot replace textiles and fabrics in the construction of a classic kick. While brainstorming, I began to think about about wearable products which have incorporated color change successfully while maintaining the look and feel of the intended garment. The first thing that came to mind was the Hypercolor t-shirt craze of the late 1980s. Despite the unfortunate side effect of accentuating sweat stains and the like, the Hypercolor t-shirt was adopted for its fun chameleon-like qualities. With that thought, I resolved to create a product which would have a similar captivating quality with a greater sense of control in order to limit undesired results. I’ve always had something of a shoe fetish and was interested in applying my concept to a an article of clothing which I believe says a lot about a person’s character and interests. And so, Kromicks were born.

The next step in my process was identifying how I wanted to use thermochromic pigment (dye used in Hypercolor t-shirts) in an expressive manner while also maintaining a sense of control over the color change. At first, I thought of simply allowing a user to control a simple switch or knob to toggle the color change functionality. For instance, if a user wanted to make his/her shoes change from black to red, he/she would flip a switch to get the desired effect. Although, I still believe such functionality would eventually be a nice feature, I didn’t believe such a simple reactive experience was enough. Through conversations with my teammate Seung Ran Woo, we converged on accentuating the original purpose of a sneaker. As designed, sneakers are intended for athletic activity. We believe a sneaker which highlights this athletic activity and movement will encourage the wearer as well as excite the spectators at the big game. I imagine the shoes as a physical representation of physical energy much like the ‘he’s on fire’ game play made famous in the classic NBA Jams video game. Imagine a middle school basketball player running up and down the courts at the championship game. Both he and the crowd know he’s giving it all he’s got because his shoes are glowing with intensity, and outshining all the other players on the court. Motivating, inspiring, and most of all fun.

Larger Version

Materials

Piezo – a simple sensor to track footsteps

LilyPad – a beautiful form factor of the Arduino to process footsteps

Small Electric Heater – to slightly warm the thermochromic paint to the necessary temperature

Proto Board – to manage power and take inputs from the sensor

Thermochromic Paint – painted on the Nike Swoosh to change color when high enough intensity levels are met

Air Force One’s – for a little style.

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Protototypes

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Video:

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Construction

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The Real Thing

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