An investigation of selected methods for the assessment of insole materials used within the shoe

During the development phase of shoe manufacture, insole materials are tested mechanically, without the use of human subjects (Pratt et al., 1986). This does not provide any information about the behaviour of those materials within their target environment, which is inside the shoe. An insole material which performs well only in the mechanical laboratory tests is of limited practical use. Insole materials must be evaluated within the shoe (SanFilippo et al., 1992) during the activity for which they are designed.