GB2412286A

GB2412286A - Footware incorporating a torch lighting device

Info

Publication number: GB2412286A
Application number: GB0406524A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Mario Demetriou; Michael Mark
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2004-03-23
Filing date: 2004-03-23
Publication date: 2005-09-28
Also published as: GB0406524D0

Abstract

An item of footware 1 comprising a boot 10 with a torch light unit 20 attached thereto and configured to illuminate a region in front of a wearer. The torch light unit 20 is attached to the front of the boot 10 towards the top 11 thereof, and is so raised above the ground for optimum beam-casting performance. The torch light unit 20 comprises a mounting portion 30and a torch body portion 50 extending from the mounting portion 30. The torch body portion 50 contains a transparent front cover plate 51, a bulb 52 and a reflective dish 53. The bulb 52 is electrically connected to a battery 40 via a switch 41, the battery being housed in the mounting portion 30.

Description

24 1 2286 - 1 Footwear

Description

The present invention relates to footwear, and in particular, boots such as Wellington boots or shoes.

There are many situations where someone may be in a dark environment and require a source of light, yet at the same time require both hands to be free to perform a 0 certain task. In such a situation, a handheld torch would be unsuitable.

Alternatively, someone may wish to have the source of light illummatmg their way or a certain area without having to hold a torch pointed in a specific direction all of the time. There exists head-mounted lights such as cavers' lights, which can be strapped to the head, or fixed to the front of a suitable hat, but these are not always appropriate and are often cumbersome and unsightly. Furthermore, the beam of light that they cast moves around with the slightest movement of the wearers head, so are unsuitable if the light is Intended to be cast constantly in a particular direction independent of the wearers head movements.

One way of providing a suitable light source would be to mount an illumination device on to a garment of clothing for the user to wear. However, most clothing is soft and supple and could not support the weight of the device. Certain types of footwear, however, can be much more solid than fabric clothing, and could provide a sufficiently sturdy mounting for such a 1lghtlog device. Footwear with small lights in the heel or sole are known, but in all of them, the lighting devices are very low powered, such as LEDs, and are provided for novelty or decorative value only, rather than to provide a substantial source of light.

The object of the present invention therefore, is to provide footwear that substantially alleviates or overcomes the problems mentioned above. - 2

According to the present invention, therefore, there is provided an item of footwear having a forward-facing torch light unit configured to illuminate a region in front of a wearer.

s In a preferred embodiment, the footwear comprises a sole and an upper portion attached to the sole, wherein the torch light unit Is mounted to the upper portion, and is preferably mounted proximate to the top of the upper portion of the footwear.

The torch light umt preferably comprises a torch portion and a mounting portion, the mounting portion attached to the footwear and the torch portion extending forwardly therefrom and having a bulb, a reflective dish and a transparent front cover plate. The mounting portion conveniently comprises a front portion and a back portion, the front portion located on the outside front of the footwear, the back portion being of smaller dimensions than the front portion and extending through an aperture in the front of the footwear to the Inside thereof.

Preferably, the rear surface of the back portion has a backing cover plate attached thereto which Sits over the inside surface of the footwear surrounding the aperture to help hold the torch light unit in place.

Advantageously, the torch portion is plvotably connected to the mounting portion and is postlonablc in a plurality of positions relative thereto.

The parts of the torch light unit on the exterior of the footwear arc preferably waterproof, and in a preferred embodiment, the footwear mcludcs a rubber sleeve surrounding and bonded to the sides of the mounting portion that extends to, and is bonded to, the outer surface of the front of the footwear to proved a watertight seal between the footwear and the mounting portion.

The torch light unit Is conveniently powered by at least one battery, and the at least one battery IS advantageously housed 1nsldc the mounting portion of the torch fight unit, and is conveniently accessed from the Aside of the footwear through the back - 3 porton by removal of the backing cover plate. Alternatively, the battery may be housed in a pouch located on the side of the boot. In a preferred embodiment, the or each battery is rechargeable, and is electrically connected to a recharging socket located on the outside of the footwear. The recharging socket conveniently includes a cover to seal the socket aperture keep out moisture and debtls. In an alternative embodiment however, the or each battery can be of the non-rechargeable, disposable type.

The torch light unit preferably includes a switch to turn the light on or off, said 0 switch advantageously being waterproof. In a preferred embodiment, the torch portion is rotatable relative to the mounting portion, and said switch is turned on or off by rotation of the torch portion.

In a preferred embodiment, the footwear is a Wellington style boot, and footwear Is conveniently made of rubber.

A preferred embodiment of the present Invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the following drawings, In which: Figure 1 shows a perspective view of one boot according to an embodiment of the present nvcntion; Figure 2 Is a front view of the boot shown In Figure 1; Figure 31S a cross-section along the line X - X of the boot shown In Figures 1 & 2; Figure 4 Is a detailed V1CW of the lighting means of the boot shown In Figures 1 - 3; Figure 5 shows a cross sectional view of one boot according to a second embodiment of the present invention; Figure 6 shows a perspective view of one boot according to a third embodiment of the present Invention; and Fgurc 7 shows a cross section along the fine Y - Y of the boot shown In Figure 6.

Referring now to the Figures 1 - 4, there Is shown an Item of footwear 1 according to the present invention comprising a boot 10 with a torch light unit 20 attached thereto. The boot 10 shown Is of the 'Wellington' boot type, and is particularly - 4 appropr1ate for use In this invention because of its waterproof properties and its height. The torch light unit 20 is attached on the front of the boot 10 towards the top 11 thereof, and so Is raised above the ground for optimum beam-casting performance. The light unit 20 extends through the front of the boot as can be seen from the cross-sect1on view in Figure 3, and the torch light unit 20 is shown in more detail In Figure 4.

The torch light unit 20 comprises a mounting portion 30 and a torch body portion extending from said mounting portion 30. The torch body portion 50 contains a 0 transparent front cover plate 51, a bulb 52 and a reflective dish 53, as known in the art. The bulb 52 is electrically connected to a battery 40 via a switch 41, said battery being housed in the mounting portion 30.

The mounting portion 30 is square and has a front portion 31 from which the torch body 50 extends, and a back portion 32 remote from the torch body 50 which IS of smaller edge d1mcnslons than the front portion 31 (see Figure 4). The back portion 32 fits through a cortcspondingly shaped hole In the front of the boot 10, and IS retained m this position on the boot 10 with a backing cover plate 33 that fixes to the rear face 32a of the back portion 32. The part of the boot 10 around said shaped hole is thereby clamped between the rear face 31a of the front portion 31 and the backing cover plate 33.

In use, the wearer operates the switch 41 on the torch on the boot 10 to provide a source of light when required. 'l'hc user Is then able to safely move about m dark environments without the need to hold a conventional hand-held torch with one hand all of the time, which means that both of the user's hands arc free to perform manual tasks as required.

Many of the environments that the boots of this Invention arc envisaged to be used m will be damp and/or muddy, e.g. agricultural environments, or subtctranean environments such as sewers or caves. It Is therefore necessary to seal the electrical componcots of the torch 50 on the outside of the boot 10 from these elements.

Accordmgly, a rubber sleeve 12 Is attached around the edge of the front portion 31 - 5 of the mounting portion 30 and is bonded to the surrounding outside surface of the boot 10 to make a watertight seal therewith.

The battery 40 is shown in the Figures as a single cell, but could also be a number s of individual batteries connected together as known In the art. In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 3, the battery 40 is a conventional disposable battery. These types of battery need replacing when they run flat, and to do so, the battery compartment in the mounting portion 30 can be accessed from inside the boot 10 through the back portion 32 by removal of the backing cover plate 33.

A second alternative embodiment of the present Invention is shown in Figure 5 which IS designed for use with a rechargeable type battery 40'. This embodiment further comprises a recharging socket 42 located In the side of the mounting portion 30 and electrically connected to the battery 40'. When the battery runs low on power, instead of replacing It, the user can connect a known type of recharging lack 43 from an electrical power supply 44 into the recharging socket 42 and thereby recharge the battery 40'. As mentioned above, an important feature of this invention is that the exterior parts are sealed to be watertight. In this embodiment therefore, the recharging socket 42 is provided with a cover 42a which is placed over the socket 42 aperture to prevent debris from getting in when the battery is not bemg charged.

Referrmg now to Figures 6 and 7, there IS illustrated a third embodiment 1 of the present invention. As with the embodiments described above, it comprises a boot 10 and a torch light unit 20 attached to the front of the boot near the top 11 thereof. The torch light unit 20 composes a mounting portion 30 and a torch body portion 50 extending from said mounting portion 30, the torch body portion 5() containing a transparent front cover plate 51, a bulb 52 and a reflective dish 53, as known in the art. In this third embodiment, the bulb 52 Is again electrically connected to a battery 40 via a switch 41, but the battery 401S housed in a separate waterproof pouch 45 located on the side of the boot 10. Said switch 41 IS located on the side of the pouch 45, and Is also waterproof. The battery 40 in the pouch 45 is connected to the bulb 52 In the mounting portion 30 by wires 46. 'lithe switch is

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used to operate the torch light unit 20 of the footwear 1 as described above with reference to the previous embodiments.

One advantage of this arrangement over those described previously, IS that because the battery 401S not housed in the mounting portion 30, the torch light unit 20 can be made smaller so that it does not protrude so far from the front of the boot 10.

This means that, in use, the torch light umt 20 is less likely to bump against objects and also that the footwear 1 will be lighter, and aesthetically, of a more sleek and attractive appearance.

The mounting portion 30, front portion 31, back portion 32 and backlog cover plate 33 that fixes to the rear face 32a of the back portion 32 are all as described previously.

In the embodiments of the Invention described above and as illustrated in Figures 1 - 7, the switch 41 is mounted either on the top of the torch portion 50 or on the side of the pouch 45, and is of a waterproof design. However, it is also possible that other switching means may be used wlthm the scope of the Invention, for example, a switch which Is turned on and off by axial rotation of the cylindrical torch portion 50 relative to the mounting portion 30.

In an unillustrated embodiment of the mventon, the torch body 50 can be moveably connected to the mounting portion 30 so that the angle of a beam of light emitted by the bulb 32 can be altered relative to the mounting portion 30 and therefore to the boot 10. A user could therefore set the torches on the boots to Illuminate the space m front of them at a specific angle or at a specific level.

Claims

Claims 1. An item of footwear having a forward-facing torch light unit

configured to illuminate a region in front of a wearer.
2. An item of footwear according to claim 1 comprising a sole and an upper portion attached to the sole, wherein the torch light unit IS mounted to the upper portion.

0
3. An item of footwear according to claim 2 whcrem the torch light unit IS mounted proximate to the top of the upper portion of the footwear.
4. An item of footwear according to any preceding claim wherein the torch fight unit comprises a torch portion and a mounting portion, the mounting portion attached to the footwear and the torch portion extending forwardly therefrom and havmg a bulb, a reflective dish and a transparent front cover plate.
5. An item of footwear according to claim 4 wherein the mounting portion composes a front portion and a back portion, the front portion located on the outside front of the footwear, the back portion being of smaller dimensions than the front portion and extending through an aperture m the front of the footwear to the inside thereof.
6. An item of footwear according to claim 5 wherein the rear surface of the back portion has a backing cover plate attached thereto which sits over the 1nsdc surface of the footwear surrounding the aperture to help hold the torch light unit m place.
7. An item of footwear according to any of claims 4 - 6 whcrem the torch portion Is p1votably connected to the mounting portion and is pos1tionable m a plurality of positions relative thereto. - 8 -
8. An item of footwear according to any of claims 4- 7 wherein the parts of the torch light unit on the exterior of the footwear are waterproof.
9. An item of footwear according to claim 8 including a rubber sleeve s surrounding and bonded to the sides of the mounting portion that extends to, and is bonded to, the outer surface of the front of the footwear to proved a watertight seal between the footwear and the mounting portion.
10. An item of footwear according to any of claims 6 - 9 wherein the torch light 0 unit iS powered by at least one battery.
11. An item of footwear according to claim 10 wherein the at least one battery IS housed inside the mounting portion of the torch fight unit.
12. An item of footwear according to claim 10 or claim 11 wherein the or each battery is housed in the mounting portion is accessed from the inside of the footwear through the back portion by removal of the backmg cover plate.
13. An item of footwear according to claim 10 wherein the or each battery is housed in a pouch located on the outside of the boot.
14. An item of footwear according to any of claims 10 to 13 wherein the or each battery is rechargeable, and IS electrically connected to a recharging socket located on the outside of the footwear.
15. An item of footwear according to claim 14 ncludmg a cover to seal the socket aperture keep out moisture and dcbrs.
16. An item of footwear according to any of claims 10 to 13 wherem the or each battery Is non-rechargeable.
17. An item of footwear according to any of claims 4 - 16 wherem the torch light unit includes a switch to turn the light on or off.
18. An item of footwear according to claim 17 wherein the torch portion is rotatable relative to the mounting portion, and said switch is turned on or off by rotation of the torch portion. s
19. An item of footwear according to any preceding claim wherein the footwear is a Wellington style boot.
20. An item of footwear according to any preceding claim wherein the footwear 0 IS made of rubber.
21. An item of footwear as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.