Industry 5.0 Enabling Technologies in the Footwear Industry: A Systematic Review

Industry 5.0 extends the digital foundations of Industry 4.0 by emphasising human-centricity, sustainability and resilience. Its implications for footwear remain dispersed across studies. This systematic review identifies enabling technologies investigated or implemented in the footwear industry and examines their relationship with the three dimensions. Scopus (23 September 2026) and Web of Science (18 September 2026) were searched for English-language original articles published in 2016–2026. Relevant titles, abstracts, and available full texts were screened; information was extracted and checked, and methodological quality was appraised across four review-specific domains. Of 631 records, 85 studies were included in a descriptive thematic synthesis. Six technology themes were identified: robotic automation and computer vision, additive manufacturing and computational design, digital intelligence and data-driven systems, worker-centred technologies, supply-chain digitisation, and smart and functional footwear. Production deployment was most evident in defined robotic, monitoring, and process-control applications; many AI, computational-design, and smart-footwear systems remained at simulation or prototype stage. Human-centricity concerned worker support and product personalisation; sustainability was often inferred from efficiency rather than measured environmental outcomes; resilience concerned production flexibility and supply-chain visibility. Few studies examined these dimensions together, and industrial validation remains limited. Overall, the footwear sector is still moving through an uneven Industry 4.0 transition, while Industry 5.0 priorities are beginning to reshape how existing technologies are designed, applied and evaluated. The review was not registered and was funded by Erasmus+ projects.