Development a shock-absorbent attachment for skydiving shoe

Abstract

Skydiving involves high landing impact forces that place skydivers at considerable risk of lower limb injuries, which account for nearly 51% of all reported cases, with 83–90% occurring during the landing phase [1]. High-speed ground contact can exceed biomechanical tolerance limits (6.75 kN for the ankle, 10 kN for the femur, and 9.5 kN for the pelvis), leading to fractures [2]. Current practice of using standard running shoes is inadequate, as amateur skydivers experience average ground reaction forces of ~4,380 N, which approach the ankle’s tolerance level, while conventional footwear absorbs only about 12.7% (~689.92 N) of this load[3]. To address this issue, the present study proposes a shoe sole attachment design to absorb and dissipate landing impact forces through compression during ground contact. The mechanism draws inspiration from automotive airbags, which reduce the forces transmitted to the human body during an accident by carefully releasing air through vent holes. Similarly, in this design, the sole attachment uses the air permeability of airbag fabric, enabling controlled air release upon compression to mitigate landing forces.