Design and Simulation of a Wireless DAQ-IC for Foot Plantar Pressure

Foot plantar pressure is the pressure fields that act between the foot skin and its supporting surface that humans experience during daily activities. Information derived from such pressure is important for diagnosing lower limb problems, footwear design, sport biomechanics performance and injury prevention. This paper presents the design and implementation of a wireless data acquisition integrated circuit for foot plantar pressure sensors. The IC is intended for an in-shoe wireless pressure measurement system. The IC is developed to interface the Micro-electromechanical sensors that has been fabricated and tested by our research group. This IC consists of serial Analog to Digital Converter and Voltage-Controlled Oscillator. The objective of this DAQ-IC is to be integrated into a shoe with the ability of wireless transmission to an external on body receiver. Such device provides low power consumption, convenient and comfortable testing system simulating a range of normal daily life activities. The unit has been designed and simulated in Cadence (EDA) tools using 0.35μm CMOS process.