CN219538103U - Heating pad and charging seat for heating pad - Google Patents

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a heating mat and a charging stand (300) for the heating mat. The heating pad includes: an air bag (10) configured to be contactable with an object to be heated to heat the object; and a heating unit (20) configured to heat the balloon (10) to expand a gas within the balloon (10), the balloon (10) being configured to deform in response to the expansion of the gas to increase a contact area with an outer surface of the subject. Thereby, efficient heating of the object can be achieved.

Description

Heating pad and charging seat for heating pad

Technical Field

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to heating mats, and more particularly, to heating mats and associated charging stations suitable for heating objects having non-planar outer surfaces.

Background

It is often desirable in life to provide insulation or heating properties to the container to maintain the contents of the container at a predetermined temperature level. For example, in daily diets, it is desirable to keep dishes in warm, so that the dishes are not heated again and the taste and nutrition of the food are not affected. The conventional heating apparatus is not satisfactory in terms of heating efficiency and portability. It is desirable to be able to improve upon conventional heating devices to further enhance their performance.

Disclosure of Invention

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a heating mat and a charging stand for a heating mat that aim to address one or more of the above problems, as well as other potential problems.

According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a heating mat is provided. The heating pad includes: an air bag configured to be capable of contacting an object to be heated to heat the object; and a heating unit configured to heat the balloon to expand gas within the balloon, the balloon being configured to deform in response to expansion of the gas to increase a contact area with an outer surface of the subject.

According to the heating pad of the embodiment of the present disclosure, efficient heating of the object can be achieved using the inflatable bladder of the heating pad.

In some embodiments, the heating pad is configured as a mobile heating coaster comprising a battery, the object to be heated having a non-planar outer surface is a cup, and the heating unit is powered by the battery. Therefore, the electric power can be conveniently provided for the heating pad, and the portability of the heating pad is greatly improved.

In some embodiments, the heating pad further comprises: a rigid face cover having an opening, the flexible wall of the balloon being at least partially disposed in the opening and rising from the opening upon deformation; and a rigid support frame disposed opposite the face cover to retain the airbag therebetween. Thus, the heating mat as a whole can be realized as a rigid structure to provide effective protection for the airbag.

In some embodiments, the heating pad further comprises a base, a battery compartment for receiving the battery is formed between the base and the support frame. Thereby, the battery can be conveniently provided.

In some embodiments, the base further comprises a contact charging contact comprising a first terminal and a second terminal for electrical contact disposed at different radial positions of the base, the second terminal comprising an annular track to enable the charging contact to contact the annular track at any circumferential position of the annular track to form a conductive path. Thereby, the convenience of charging the heating pad is improved.

In some embodiments, the base further comprises a USB charging interface configured to enable charging of the battery via a USB charging cord.

In some embodiments, the heating pad further comprises a flexible base disposed opposite the balloon to retain the heating unit between the base and the balloon; wherein the laminate of the base, the airbag and the heating unit is configured to be capable of being rolled up to form a housed state, and to be capable of being unrolled from the housed state to form an operating state suitable for heating. Thereby, the heating pad can be stored in a foldable manner.

According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, a charging stand for a heating mat is provided. The heating pad is according to the first aspect, the charging stand comprises a plurality of charging slots, the shape of the charging slots is matched with that of the heating pad, so that the heating pad can be received in the charging slots; the charging slot further includes a charging interface configured to: the charging interface is connected with a corresponding interface of the heating pad to charge the heating pad in a state that the heating pad is received in the charging slot. Thus, a plurality of heating pads can be conveniently charged at the same time.

In some embodiments, the charging slot includes a structure that is open at least on the front side and on the sides to enable the heating pad to be inserted into the charging slot from multiple directions. Thereby, the heating pad can be conveniently disposed in the charging tank, and the charging tank can be miniaturized.

In some embodiments, the charging slot includes conductive contacts formed at predetermined locations that are positioned to align with respective charging terminals of the battery on the heating pad in a state in which the heating pad is received in the charging slot.

Drawings

The above, as well as additional purposes, features, and advantages of embodiments of the present disclosure will become readily apparent from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the accompanying drawings, several embodiments of the present disclosure are shown by way of example, and not by way of limitation.

Fig. 1 shows an overall schematic of a heating device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the heating device shown in fig. 1, wherein the heating device is in a non-heated state.

Fig. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the heating device shown in fig. 1, wherein the heating device is in a heated state.

Fig. 4 shows an exploded view of the heating device shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a heating device according to another embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein the heating device is in a non-heated state.

Fig. 6 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a heating device according to another embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein the heating device is in a heated state.

Fig. 7 shows an exploded view of the heating device according to fig. 5 and 6.

Fig. 8 illustrates a perspective view of a heating device according to yet another embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 9 shows a side view of the heating device shown in fig. 8, wherein the heating device is in a non-heated state.

Fig. 10 shows a cross-sectional view of the heating device shown in fig. 8, wherein the heating device is in a heated state.

Fig. 11 shows an exploded view of the heating device shown in fig. 8.

Fig. 12 shows a bottom view of the heating device shown in fig. 8.

Fig. 13 illustrates a perspective view of a charging dock according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Like or corresponding reference characters indicate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views.

Detailed Description

Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. While the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated in the drawings, it should be understood that the present disclosure may be embodied in various forms and should not be limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art.

The term "comprising" and variations thereof as used herein means open ended, i.e., "including but not limited to. The term "or" means "and/or" unless specifically stated otherwise. The term "based on" means "based at least in part on". The terms "one example embodiment" and "one embodiment" mean "at least one example embodiment. The term "another embodiment" means "at least one additional embodiment". The terms "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," and the like, as used herein, refer to a place or position relationship based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the drawings, and are merely for convenience in describing the principles of the present disclosure, and do not refer to or imply that the elements referred to must have a particular orientation, be configured or operated in a particular orientation, and thus should not be construed as limiting the present disclosure.

As described above, the conventional heating apparatus is not satisfactory in terms of, for example, heating efficiency. In view of this, according to the present disclosure, there is provided a heating device by forming a flexible balloon at a surface with an object to be heated, and expanding the balloon by heating. The profile of the inflated balloon will be deformed following the profile of the surface of the heating object, thereby increasing the contact area of the heating device with the object to achieve efficient heating of the object. Specific implementations of heating devices according to embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1-4 illustrate a heating device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 1-shows a perspective view of a heating device 100, fig. 2 and 3 show cross-sectional views of the heating device in different states, respectively, and fig. 4 shows an exploded view of the heating device 100.

As shown in fig. 1 to 4, the heating device 100 includes a balloon 10 and a heating unit 20. The balloon 10 is configured to contact the outer surface of the object to be heated and has a flexible wall. The flexible wall is configured to form a closed cavity 30. The cavity 30 is filled with a gas. The gas may be, for example, air, or other suitable gas. The heating unit 20 is configured to heat the balloon 10 to expand the gas within the cavity 30. With the inflation of the gas, the flexible wall of the balloon 10 deforms under pressure following the contours of the subject. Thereby, the flexible wall in a high temperature state can be in contact with the object over a larger contact area to heat the object. The heating device has high heating efficiency due to the presence of the balloon body.

In some embodiments, balloon 10 may independently form cavity 30. This is particularly advantageous in the case of a double-sided or multi-sided heating of the balloon 10. The contact surfaces of two or more of the thermal conductors may be used for expansion, so that multiple objects or different parts of one object may be heated at multiple locations. In other embodiments, bladder 10 may be formed into a cavity in combination with other components.

The balloon 10 may be made of a material having a certain flexibility. The material may be not limited as long as the material of the heat conductor is capable of forming the balloon body and is capable of expanding in the case of gas expansion. As an example, the heat conductor may be integrally formed of a material such as silicone, resin, rubber, plastic, or the like. In some embodiments, particularly where the heating temperature is high, there will be a significant benefit to having a flexible material with high temperature resistance. In some embodiments, the flexible material has some elasticity, and may also return to its original shape after inflation of the balloon, which may also have additional benefits in some cases. It should be appreciated that this is merely exemplary and that any other suitable material may be used for the flexible material.

In the embodiment shown in fig. 1, the heating device 100 is shown in the shape of a mat. It should be understood that this is merely exemplary. The heating device 100 may be formed in any other suitable shape. Further, although the inventive concept according to the embodiments of the present disclosure is illustrated with the heating food container as an example in the embodiments of the present disclosure, this is merely exemplary, and the heating apparatus according to the embodiments of the present disclosure may be used to heat other objects, particularly objects having no flat surface.

As shown in fig. 2-4, the heating device 100 may further include a base 40. The base 40 is disposed opposite the balloon 10 to hold the heating unit 20 between the base 40 and the balloon 10. As an example, the base 40 may constitute a support surface, for example in case the object to be heated is a container holding dishes. The base 40 may be placed directly on the table top to support the entire object.

In some embodiments, the base 40 may be made of a flexible material. In the case where the base 40 is composed of a flexible material, there is a significant benefit to the portability of the heating device 100. As an example, the base 40, the airbag 10, and the heating unit 20 may form a sheet-shaped laminate. The entire laminate may be selectively rolled to form a roll-like shape. In this case, the storage of the heating device is facilitated. When needed for use, the laminate may have been unwound to prepare the heating target. In some embodiments, the base 40 may be made of a rigid material or a material that is more rigid than the thermal conductor. This has advantages in terms of support strength.

In some applications requiring single-sided inflation heating, the base 40 may also be made of a different material than the bladder 10. The entire rigidity of the base 40 may be formed to be greater than the rigidity of the heat conductor by selecting different materials so that the base 40 is not deformed, while the airbag 10 is easily deformed. In some embodiments, the base 40 may be made of the same material as the balloon 10. Deformation of the balloon 10 may be facilitated by sizing the base 40 and the balloon 10, for example, the thickness of the base 40 may be formed thicker than the thickness of the balloon 10 to increase the rigidity of the base 40.

In some embodiments, the base 40, the balloon 10, and the heating unit 20 are all formed in the form of a sheet, and the balloon 10 is arranged in a sandwich manner between the balloon 10 and the base 40. In some embodiments, the base 40, bladder 10, and heating unit 20 may be secured together by physical securement means such as adhesive, fusion welding, or the like. In the case where the base 40, bladder 10 and heating unit 20 are flexible bodies, this manner of engagement has the added benefit of not altering the rigidity of the structure. It should be understood that the illustrated embodiment is merely exemplary, and the shapes of the base 40, the airbag 10, and the heating unit 20 may be selectively set according to an application scene in which an object is heated as needed.

In some embodiments, the heating unit 20 includes a flexible substrate and a thermal resistor embedded within the flexible substrate. As an example, the heating unit 20 may be a PI heat generating film. The flexible substrate may be polyimide plastic, and the thermal resistor may be a heat generating sheet, a heat generating strip, a heat generating filament, or the like formed of a material such as copper or stainless steel.

The operation of the heating apparatus according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to fig. 2 and 3. As shown in fig. 2, when the heating device 100 is not operated, i.e., the heating unit 20 is not energized, the balloon of the balloon 10 is not inflated and assumes a collapsed state. As shown in fig. 3, when the heating unit 20 is energized, the heat generated by the heating unit 20 expands the gas within the cavity 30. The shape of the balloon 10 will deform following the shape of the subject. Accordingly, the contact area between the balloon 10 and the object to be heated is greatly increased, thereby significantly increasing the heating efficiency. In the embodiment shown in fig. 3, the cavity 30 is formed in a bulged shape.

It will be appreciated that in the illustrated embodiment, the shape of the air-bag 10 is shown as a bulging shape in the operational state of the heating device, which is particularly suitable for heating shapes having a concave profile, such as dishes for holding food material. It should be understood that this is merely exemplary and that the inflated shape of the balloon 10 may be formed into any other illustrative shape. Furthermore, in the illustrated embodiment, the balloon 10 shows only one inflation lumen, it being understood that this is merely exemplary and that the balloon 10 may form multiple inflation lumens.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 4, the balloon 10 may have a central portion 12 and a peripheral portion 14 located at the periphery of the central portion. The central portion 12 may correspond to an inflated portion for forming an airbag. The outer peripheral portion 14 may be used for fixation, for example, for fixing the balloon 10 and the base 40 together. In some embodiments, bladder 10 may be adhered to base 40 at peripheral portion 14. By limiting the adhesion force of the outer peripheral portion 14, it is ensured that the airbag 10 can be deformed only in the center portion 12. Although in the illustrated embodiment, the central portion 12 is shown as being circular, this is merely exemplary. The central portion 12 may be formed in any other suitable shape.

In some embodiments, a hinge may be provided between the central portion 12 and the peripheral portion 14, as desired. The hinge portion is configured to facilitate deformation of the central portion 12 relative to the outer peripheral portion. In some embodiments, a reinforcement may be provided between the central portion 12 and the outer peripheral portion 14, which may be used to strengthen the strength of the central portion 12 to prevent frequent expansion of the central portion from damage.

As shown in fig. 4, the heating unit 20 may be formed in the form of a thin film. The heating unit 20 may include supplying power to the thermal resistor within the heating unit 20 through the terminal 22 to enable the thermal resistor to generate heat. In some embodiments, the heating unit 20 is powered via direct current. In other embodiments, the heating unit 20 may be powered by alternating current. As an example, the heating unit 20 may provide a connection interface to connect with an external power source such as mains. In some embodiments, the heating unit 20 may be provided with an internal battery to be powered with direct current. Alternatively or additionally, the heating unit 20 may be provided with an internal or external AC/DC power converter to heat with direct current.

As shown in fig. 4, the base 40 is also formed in the form of a sheet. As shown in fig. 4, the base 40 may have a central portion 42 and an outer peripheral portion 44 located at the outer periphery of the central portion. The central portion 42 of the base 40 may form a bladder with the central portion 12 of the bladder 10. The outer peripheral portion 44 of the base 40 may be attached with the central portion 14 of the bladder 10. For example, the base 40 may be secured to the bladder 10 by physical means such as adhesive, thermal welding, or the like. In this case, the heating device 10 may be stored in a folded state; and can be unfolded when in use.

Fig. 5-7 show schematic diagrams of a heating device 100 according to another embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 5 and 6 show cross-sectional views of the heating device 100, respectively. Fig. 7 shows an exploded view of the heating device 100. The embodiment shown in fig. 5-7 is similar to the embodiment described in fig. 2-4. Except that the heating device 100 is also provided with additional protection components.

As shown in fig. 5-7, the heating apparatus 100 further includes a protective layer 50. In some embodiments, a protective layer 50 is disposed between the air bag 10 and the heating unit 20. By way of example, the protective layer 50 may be made of a material that is not easily physically penetrated, such as plastic, resin, imitation leather, animal fur, etc. In the case where the balloon 10, the base 40, and the like are made of flexible materials, a sharp object easily pierces the balloon 10, the base 40. When the sharp object is a metal body, the metal body is easily subjected to an electric shock accident once contacting with the thermal resistor in the heating unit 20. This risk is even more pronounced in the case of heating unit 20 heated with alternating current. For this reason, by providing the shielding layer 50, the shielding layer can prevent the user from carelessly piercing the airbag 10 with a sharp object (e.g., a metal body) to contact the heating unit 20, thereby causing an electric shock accident.

Additionally or alternatively, a protective layer 50 may also be disposed between the base 40 and the heating unit 20 to prevent penetration of hard objects from the outside into contact with the heating unit 20. Similarly, thereby, an inadvertent sharp object (e.g., a metal body) may be prevented from piercing the base 40 to contact the heating unit 20, thereby causing an electric shock accident.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 7, the heating apparatus 100 may further include an insulating layer 60 disposed between the heating unit 20 and the base 40. In this case, heat may be prevented from being transferred to the susceptor 40 via the insulating layer. Thereby, the heat of the heating unit 20 can be prevented from being dissipated through the base 40. Therefore, the energy consumption can be reduced, the heat energy efficiency can be improved, and the safety requirement can be met.

Fig. 8-12 illustrate a heating device 200 according to yet another embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 8, 9, 12 respectively show different angle views of the heating device 200, fig. 10 shows a cross-sectional view of the heating device shown in fig. 8, and fig. 11 shows an exploded view of the heating device shown in fig. 8. The heating device 200 shown in fig. 8 to 12 adopts a structure of a rigid frame.

As shown in fig. 8-12, the heating device 200 may include a rigid face cover 270, an air bladder 10, a heating unit 20, and a rigid support frame 280. The air bag 10, the heating unit 20 in the heating device 200 are similar to the air bag 10, the heating unit 20 of the heating device 100 according to the above-described embodiment. To avoid repetition, detailed description thereof is omitted, and a difference from the above-described embodiment is emphasized.

The face cover 270 has an opening 272. The flexible wall of balloon 10 is at least partially disposed in opening 272. Upon inflation of the balloon of the heating device 200, the flexible wall of the balloon 10 bulges out of the opening 272 upon inflation and deformation under pressure to contact the outer surface of the object to be heated. By providing a face cover of rigid construction, a rigid support structure can be provided for the entire heating device.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 10 and 11, the heating device 200 may further include a rigid support frame 280. The support 280 is disposed opposite the face cover 270 to hold the heating unit 20 between the support 280 and the face cover 270. In this case, the air bag 10 and the heating unit 20 may be fixed together by the rigid support frame 280 and the face cover 270. Since both the support frame 280 and the cover 270 are rigid structures, effective protection can be provided for the air bag 10 and the heating unit 20. Furthermore, a further functional expansion of the heating device 200 is possible. In some embodiments, the support bracket 280 and the face cover 270 may be fastened together by screws. Although in the illustrated embodiment, the heating device 200 includes a rigid support frame 280. In other embodiments, the support 280 may also be implemented as a flexible support structure, in which case the support 280 may be similar to the base 40 of the heating device 100 of the above-described embodiments.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 10, 11, the balloon 10 and the support frame 280 collectively form a balloon cavity. It should be understood that this is merely exemplary, and in other embodiments, the thermal conductors may independently form the balloon cavity. For example, the balloon 10 may also be implemented in the form of an upper and lower heat conductor and in combination form a cavity.

In some embodiments, the heating device 200 may also include a separate power supply device, such as a battery. In this case, the convenience of power supply of the heating unit is greatly improved. This has significant benefits in application scenarios that are far away from or not readily accessible to mains (e.g. outdoors). In the case where the support 280 and the face cover 270 are implemented as rigid structures, it may become technically possible to accommodate the battery.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 9-12, the heating device 200 may further include a base 290. The base 290 and the support bracket 280 may form a battery compartment for receiving the battery 250, and the heating unit 20 may be powered by the battery 250 in the battery compartment. As shown in fig. 10, a base 290 may be provided below the support 280, which may form a battery compartment suitable for receiving a battery. The circuit for the heating unit 20 disposed above the support frame 280 may be connected to the battery 280 through the through-hole of the support frame 280 to supply power to the heating unit 20 through the battery 280.

In some embodiments, some safeguards may be provided to the battery 280. As shown in fig. 10-11, the battery 250, which is received in the battery compartment, may be provided with a first heat insulation pad 296 on the upper surface. The insulation blanket 296 may include insulation such as aerogel. The battery 280 may be insulated from the support frame 280 by insulation pads 296. In some embodiments, the battery 250 may also have a second insulation pad 298 at the lower surface. Thus, the battery 280 may be insulated from the base 290 by the insulation pad 298. In this case, the battery may be thermally insulated by the upper and/or lower surface insulation pads; further, the heat of the battery 250 itself can be radiated through the side space, for example.

In some embodiments, battery 280 may be implemented as a rechargeable battery. To this end, the heating device 200 may further include a charging interface for charging the battery 280. In some embodiments, the charging interface may include a USB port 294, such as a Type-C or other protocol Type charging interface. In some embodiments, alternatively or additionally, the base 290 further comprises charging contacts 291, 292 adapted to make electrical connection with the charging stand. The charging contacts 291, 292 may be implemented in various ways. In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 11 and 12, the charging contact 291 may be implemented in the form of a circular contact, and the charging contact 292 may be implemented in the form of a circular track. Any portion of the charging stand can effectively establish a charging path as long as it contacts any portion of the endless track of the charging contact 292. Such a structure improves the convenience of charging. In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 11, the base 290 may further include a cleat 298 that may function as a cleat to enhance the safety of the heating device in use.

Fig. 13 illustrates a perspective view of a charging stand 300 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The cradle 300 is configured to charge the battery of the heating device 200. As shown in fig. 13, the charging stand 300 includes a stand body 310 and a plurality of charging slots 320 provided on the stand body 310. The housing 310 forms a base of the charging stand. In some embodiments, the housing 310 may be configured in the manner of a rack or cabinet. The housing 310 may be disposed adjacent to a power source such as mains electricity to facilitate power extraction.

The charging slot 320 extends protrusively from the housing 310 and is configured to removably receive the heating device 200. The charging slot 320 may include a socket adapted to receive the heating device 200. Considering that the heating device 200 is generally implemented in the form of a heating pad, insertion and extraction of the heating device 200 can be facilitated by the arrangement of the sockets. A plurality of charging slots 320 are disposed in rows and/or columns on the housing 310. In this case, the plurality of heating devices 200 may be charged simultaneously with the charging stand 300.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 13, the charging slot 320 includes a first support arm 322 and a second support arm 324 disposed spaced apart from the first support arm 322. The open space between the first support arm 322 and the second support arm 324 is configured to receive the heating device 200, the first support arm being configured to contact a side of the flexible wall of the heating device 200, the second support arm 324 being configured to contact a side of the heating device 200 opposite the flexible wall. The support arm may be formed as an open space at both sides or front, whereby the heating device 200 may be easily received on the cradle 300 in a plug-in manner and the space occupied by the cradle is minimized. In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 13, charging slots 320 adjacent to each other may share support arms 322. Thereby, the space occupied by the charging stand can be further reduced.

The charging slot 320 is configured to provide a charging interface for the heating device 200 in addition to providing structural support for the heating device 200. The charging slot 320 may be configured as a charging interface that is in electrical contact with a charging terminal for a battery provided on the heating device 200.

In some embodiments, where the heating device 200 is charged using a USB interface, the cradle 300 may provide multiple USB interfaces. In a state where the heating device 200 is disposed in the charging slot 320, the USB interface of the cradle 300 and the corresponding USB interface on the heating device 200 may be connected one by one, thereby charging the heating device 200 through the USB interface of the cradle 300.

In some embodiments, the charging slot 320 may charge the heating device 200 by way of charging contacts. When the heating device 200 is received in place in the charging slot 320, the charging contacts in the charging slot 320 may automatically align with corresponding charging interfaces on the heating device 200. This provides great convenience for charging the heating device 200.

In some embodiments, the second support arm includes first and second contacts formed at predetermined locations of the second support arm, the locations of the first and second contacts being arranged to correspond to the locations of respective charging terminals 291, 292 of the battery on the heating device 200. In the case where the heating device 200 includes the charging terminal 292 of the endless track type, the benefits of the charging stand will become more apparent. Since the looped track type charging terminals 292 can make electrical contact throughout 360, electrical contact can be made conveniently as long as the heating device 200 is received in place in the charging slot 320 without the need for rotation or further adjustment of the heating device 200. This significantly improves the convenience of charging. According to the charging seat disclosed by the embodiment of the utility model, the heating device in the form of the heating pad can be conveniently charged.

Moreover, although operations are depicted in a particular order, this should be understood as requiring that such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Likewise, while several specific implementation details are included in the above discussion, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present disclosure. Certain features that are described in the context of separate embodiments can also be implemented in combination in a single implementation. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single implementation can also be implemented in multiple implementations separately or in any suitable subcombination.

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are example forms of implementing the claims.

The foregoing description of the embodiments of the present disclosure has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, and is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the various embodiments described. The terminology used herein was chosen in order to best explain the principles of the embodiments, the practical application, or the technical improvements in the marketplace, or to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims (10)

1. A heating mat, comprising:

an air bag (10) configured to be contactable with an object to be heated to heat the object; and

a heating unit (20) configured to heat the balloon (10) to expand a gas within the balloon (10), the balloon (10) being configured to deform in response to the expansion of the gas to increase a contact area with an outer surface of the subject.

2. The heating mat according to claim 1, characterized in that the heating mat is configured as a mobile heating coaster comprising a battery (250), the object to be heated having a non-planar outer surface being a cup, the heating unit (20) being powered by the battery (250).

3. The heating mat of claim 2, further comprising:

-a rigid face cover (270), the face cover (270) having an opening (272), the flexible wall of the balloon (10) being at least partially disposed in the opening (272) and bulging out of the opening upon deformation;

-a rigid support frame (280), the support frame (280) being arranged opposite the face cover (270) to hold the airbag (10) between the support frame (280) and the face cover (270).

4. A heating pad according to claim 3, further comprising a base (290), a battery compartment being formed between the base (290) and the support (280) for receiving the battery (250).

5. The heating mat of claim 4, wherein the base (290) further comprises contact charging contacts comprising a first terminal (291) and a second terminal (292) for electrical contact disposed at different radial positions of the base (290), the second terminal (292) comprising an annular track such that a charging contact is in contact with the annular track at any circumferential position of the annular track to enable an electrically conductive path.

6. The heating pad of claim 4, wherein the base (290) further comprises a USB charging interface configured to charge the battery (250) via a USB charging cord.

7. The heating mat according to claim 1, further comprising a flexible base (40), the base (40) being arranged opposite the balloon (10) to hold the heating unit (20) between the base (40) and the balloon (10);

wherein the stack of the base (40), the airbag (10) and the heating unit (20) is configured to be rolled up to form a stowed condition and to be unrolled from the stowed condition to form an operational condition suitable for heating.

8. A charging stand for a heating mat, characterized in that the heating mat is a heating mat according to any one of claims 2-6, the charging stand (300) comprising a plurality of charging slots (320), the shape of the charging slots (320) matching the shape of the heating mat such that the heating mat can be received in the charging slots (320); the charging slot (320) further includes a charging interface configured to: the charging interface is connected with a corresponding interface of the heating pad to charge the heating pad in a state that the heating pad is received in the charging slot (320).

9. The cradle (300) of claim 8, wherein the charging slot (320) includes a structure that is open at least on a front side and a side to enable the heating pad to be inserted into the charging slot (320) from multiple directions.

10. The charging cradle (300) according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the charging slot (320) comprises conductive contacts formed at predetermined locations, the locations of the conductive contacts being arranged to align with respective charging terminals of the battery on the heating pad in a state in which the heating pad is received in the charging slot (320).