Empa’s sweating foot model evaluates the physiological performance of footwear by simulating the properties of the human foot. To assess the performance of the footwear the overall heat resistance and the water vapor permeability are measured. Human functionality, for example perspiration, skin temperature, heat flux and gait, can be simulated. The model consists of the thermal foot, a controlling unit including a computer, the perspiration unit (with 32 perspiration injectors), and the step simulator (up to 40 steps/min, with an applied load of up to 45 Kg). The foot is composed of 13 segments, which can be controlled independently. The thermal and water vapor characteristics can be analyzed separately for each segment.