The days of squinting¹ at a map or the screen of your smartphone when you’re lost will soon be over – thanks to new shoes that tell you which way to turn.

手捧地图或拿着手机找路的时代马上就要结束啦！这要归功于智能导航鞋的问世。

The shoes use a Bluetooth link to communicate with your mobile’s mapping system.

导航鞋利用蓝牙链接手机中的地图导航系统。

The mobile works out which route you should be following and the shoes then emit a discreet² vibration³ in either foot telling you when and where to change direction.

手机负责导航，而需要改变行走方向时，鞋子就会轻微振动以发出提醒。

The shoes will also count the number of steps you’ve taken and the calories you’ve burned – and they’ll even buzz to warn you you’ve left your phone behind, or to alert you when you’re travelling past an interesting landmark⁴.

导航鞋还可以计算你行走的步数以及消耗的卡路里。如果你忘记带手机了，或者走过了某个旅游名胜，导航鞋就会发出声音提醒你。

'They are as easy to use as a tap on the shoulder,’ said Krispian Lawrence, 30, who developed the shoes with partner Anirudh Sharma, 28, in Hyderabad, India.

这项技术的开发者是两个印度青年，39岁的克里斯潘-劳伦斯和28岁的阿尼路德-夏尔马。劳伦斯说：“这双鞋用起来很简单，就像有人拍肩膀提醒你一样。”

‘You can even communicate with them using hand gestures and finger snaps because the shoes have sensors⁵ that can pick up movement and sound.'

“你甚至可以用手势或响指对它发出指令，因为鞋子里有动作和声音传感器。

The Lechal shoes go on sale worldwide in June but Lawrence and Sharma’s company, Ducere Technologies, has already taken more than 3,000 pre-orders.

导航鞋将在今年6月全球上市，而劳伦斯和夏尔马的公司目前接到的预订单总量已经超过了3000双。

Lawrence believes the shoes will also improve road safety. ‘If I’m on my bike or motorbike, I don’t want to stare at my phone – it’s dangerous,’ he says.‘I’d rather be guided by my footwear.’

劳伦斯认为，这种鞋还可以提高道路安全。他说“如果我正骑着自行车或摩托车，就不会去看手机，那会很危险。我宁愿让鞋子来导航。”

He believes his innovation will prove invaluable⁶ for the visually impaired⁷ and has pledged that every mainstream⁸ pair sold by Ducere will subsidise a cheaper pair for a visually impaired person.

他坚信，这一发明将大大帮助视力有损伤的人，并承诺给他们提供折扣。

Footnav technology does not impress explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes, however.‘What’s wrong with a good old-fashioned map?’ said the 70-year-old when told of the shoes.

但也有人对“鞋子导航技术”不以为然。英国探险家，70岁的雷诺夫法因斯就说道：“传统地图有什么不好？”

‘If you rely too heavily on technology you’re heading for trouble. Too many people have forgotten the basics: how to read a map and a compass.’

“如果过于依赖科技，反而会带来麻烦。很多人已经忘记如何看地图，怎样用指南针了。”