Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux du Centre-Sud-de-l'Île-de-Montréal

Published purpose

The project aims to maintain, restore, or improve meaningful and safe participation outside the home (e.g., in community or public settings) for people living with mild cognitive impairment or early-stage dementia (PTCLD). The Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 5 technology solution consists of a smart insole with location and activity tracking capabilities, allowing PTCLDs and care partners to define personalized safe zones and guidance and assistance protocols. The solution includes a chipset integrated into a shoe insole, a background IoT platform, and a mobile app to enable the user to interact with the device. As part of the project, a dementia-friendly web interface and user experience will be designed, integrated, and iteratively evaluated through a mixed-method case study (n = 8–10 in Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia, 3–5 months/case, in home and public settings). The project will promote the commercial maturity and relevance of the smart insole solution, foster partnerships between government and communities (with a view to the subsequent TRL 6 project), and generate scientific evidence on the technology and out-of-home participation for PTCLDs and their care ecosystem.