Sports Product Design master’s student Gabi Lorenzo’s capstone thesis project connects researchers, product designers, sports scientists and women athletes. Under the mentorship of Susan Sokolowski, professor and director of the UO’s Sports Product Design Program, Lorenzo integrated a wearable sensor developed by UO researchers into the midsole of a distance running shoe and tested it among a group of women runners.
“The goal is how can this be imperceptible to the runner, while collecting data that’s accurate and usable for the runner,” Lorenzo added. “It allows us to learn what’s happening to the foot instead of what’s happening to the shoe. That is arguably more important to the runner, what’s happening to their body.