KR20050024716A - Shoes with cooling and heating functions - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: Shoes having cooling and heating functions are provided to allow heating and cooling of the shoes while walking or resting, and to prevent a cooling/heating member thereof from damaged while walking. CONSTITUTION: The shoes having cooling and heating functions are composed of a sole and an upper. The shoes include a cooling/heating member(10) provided at a predetermined area of the upper thereof and giving cooling and heating functions, a receiving space for receiving the cooling/heating member, a heat transferring member(30) connected to the cooling/heating member. The heat transferring member extends to a predetermined area of the shoes for controlling a temperature of the shoes, and transfers heat provided by the cooling/heating member to the predetermined area.

Description

SHOES WITH COOLING AND HEATING FUNCTIONS}

The present invention relates to a shoe having a cooling and heating function, and more particularly to a shoe that can effectively cool and heat a predetermined area or the entire area of the shoe.

As it is known, the inside of the shoe is easily generated odor due to the sweat generated from the foot, the lack of air circulation with the outside of the shoe easily create an unsanitary environment, such as inhabiting fungal bacteria. In cold conditions, cold can also cause frostbite on the feet. Thus, it can give a disgust to odors to others and the user himself is susceptible to skin diseases caused by cold and / or fungal bacteria.

In order to solve this problem, various types of functional shoes have been proposed, the main aspect of which is to increase the amount of air circulation between the inside and outside of the shoe. As a representative example, U.S. Patent No. 5,505,010 entitled "ventilating shoes" and U.S. Patent No. 5,068,981 named "Self-Ventilating Device for Shoe Insoles," etc. There is this. That is, the above devices are usually composed of an air pump for introducing external air, a valve for adjusting the air, and an air flow passage installed inside the bottom of the shoe, so that air intake, compression, and exhaust are repeatedly performed while walking. Allow air inside the shoe to continue to circulate. However, in the case of a stationary state rather than walking, especially when a clerical worker is working for a long time while wearing shoes in the office, such an air pump type air circulation system does not work, and the circulation of air It is made by so that there is a high possibility of failure due to dust, etc. has a disadvantage.

In order to compensate for these disadvantages, Korean Utility Model Registration No. 20-0197405 (designated name: "cooling shoes") discloses a technique for continuously providing a cooling function by mounting a thermoelectric module at the center of a shoe bottom. However, in the above design, only the function of cooling the inside of the shoe is provided, and a heat sink that radiates heat is protruded and exposed to the outside from the bottom of the shoe, so that there is a significant risk of breakage during walking and a limited area around the installation area of the thermoelectric module Only has the disadvantage that the cooling effect is achieved.

Thus, there is still a need for an effective functional shoe that can continue to operate even while stationary and there is no risk of breakage while walking and can selectively cool and heat part or all of the shoe.

The present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems with the prior art, the main object of the present invention is to provide a functional shoe that can cool and heat some and all of the shoes without the risk of breakage during walking.

In addition, to provide a functional shoe that can be effectively switched to the cooling and heating functions.

According to an aspect of the present invention, the cooling / heating means which is installed at a predetermined portion of the upper and provides a cooling and heating function, a storage space for accommodating the cooling / heating means, and connected to the cooling / heating means, A shoe is provided which extends to a predetermined area of the shoe to be temperature controlled and includes heat source transfer means for transferring the heat source provided by the cooling / heating means to the predetermined area.

The cooling / heating means is preferably a thermoelectric element, an ice pack having its own cooling function, or a hot pack having its own heating function.

In addition, the heat source transfer means is a flexible thin plate made of metal or high quality thermally conductive plastic for transferring heat energy to a predetermined portion of the shoe, or the air temperature controlled by the cooling / heating means It is preferably an air circulation passage that allows delivery to a predetermined region.

Hereinafter, functional shoes having a cooling and heating function according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 shows a general shoe composed of insoles, midsoles and soles and uppers, Figure 2 is a partial perspective view of a shoe according to an embodiment of the present invention is cooled and heated by a thermoelectric element, Figure 3 is ice Partial perspective view of a shoe in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention wherein cooling and heating are accomplished by pack and / or hot pack.

As shown in these figures, the shoe 1 having the cooling and heating function of the present invention is provided with cooling / heating means 10 installed at a predetermined portion of the upper 5 to provide cooling and heating functions, and cooling / Heat source transfer means 30 for transferring the heat source provided by the heating means 10.

First, look at the cooling / heating means 10 to provide a cooling and heating function. The cooling / heating means 10 includes a thermoelectric element 11 as shown in FIG. 2 and a hot-pack 12 or ice-pack 13 as shown in FIG. And the like can be used. As shown in Fig. 4, the cooling / heating means 10 is composed of a thermoelectric element 11 and an upper plate 11a and a lower plate 11b disposed on and under the thermoelectric element 11 and selectively having heat generating and heat absorbing functions, respectively. do. In such a thermoelectric element 11, the function of the upper plate and the lower plate can be selectively switched by changing the direction of the current flowing through the thermoelectric element. When the thermoelectric element 11 is used as the cooling / heating means 10, a power supply device 20 such as a battery for supplying power is required.

In addition, when performing a cooling and heating function for a relatively short time, hot packs or shoes that can use a heat source stored therein by using a microwave or hot water to heat enough to use for heating the shoes An ice pack or the like that can use a cold source accumulated therein after being sufficiently frozen in a freezer such as a refrigerator to be used for cooling may be used. The cooled and heated ice packs and hot packs themselves have a cold source and a heat source therein, and thus do not require an additional power supply 20 such as the thermoelectric element described above. Since such hot packs and ice packs are general, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The heat source or cold source and the heat medium (hereinafter referred to as "heat source") provided from the cooling / heating means 10 are directed to a predetermined area in the shoe requiring temperature control by the heat source transfer means 30 which will be described in detail below. Must be communicated. Importantly, the main function of this heat source transfer means 30 is to effectively cool and heat a predetermined area inside the shoe, ie, a part (eg, the toe part that feels the most cold) or the whole inside the shoe. Hereinafter, the heat source transfer means 30 will be described in detail.

The heat source transfer means 30 is divided according to the manner of cooling and heating a predetermined portion inside the shoe. In the case of the configuration in which the heat source transfer means 30 directly receives thermal energy from the cooling / heating means 10 and supplies it to a predetermined portion of the shoe, the heat source transfer means 30 is made of metal or a plastic having excellent thermal conductivity. It is preferred to be made in the form of a thin plate 31. In addition, in the case of the configuration in which the heat source transfer means 30 is intended to control the temperature of a predetermined portion or the entire inside of the shoe by circulating a heat source (for example, air) cooled and heated by the cooling / heating means 10, The heat source transfer means 30 is preferably manufactured in the form of a thin and flat tube 32 covering and communicating with a predetermined portion inside the shoe to be temperature controlled.

This flexible plate 31 or tube 32 is usually disposed within the upper 5 of the shoe, so it should be formed thin enough so that the wearer does not feel uncomfortable when walking. In order to further improve the flexibility (flexibility) of the flexible plate 31, it may be formed in the form of a plate having a hole in the middle or in a net structure. In addition, the flexible tube 32 may be in the form of a manifold branched into several branches, such as in the form of a hand. The flexible plate or tube is shaped to surround a predetermined portion of the inside of the shoe to be temperature controlled, that is, to form a pouch (see FIG. 6) that completely surrounds the toe portion (front part of the foot) of the wearer, and the foot including the sole of the wearer. It may be formed in various forms such as a form surrounding the middle portion (see FIG. 7), or a form surrounding the middle portion of the foot except the sole of the wearer (see FIG. 8). If necessary, it may also be formed in a form arranged to cover part or all of the bottom of the shoe.

On the other hand, the heating / cooling means 10 is usually provided in the upper 5. To this end, it is a matter of course that a predetermined storage space 40 for accommodating the heating / cooling means 10 is formed in the upper. In the predetermined storage space 40, an inlet and a cover 41 for attaching and detaching and replacing a thermoelectric element 11, an ice pack, a hot pack 12, 13, etc. must be formed on the outer surface of the upper 5, The cover 41 is formed to be openable and closeable using a normal zipper, Velcro tape, or the like.

Cover 41 for opening and closing the entrance of the storage space 40, unlike the upper of the shoe 5 is usually excellent in ventilation, it is preferable to have the following characteristics. When the thermoelectric element 11 is accommodated in the storage space 40, the cover 41 of the storage space is preferably made of a material that is well ventilated with the outside of the shoe. On the other hand, when the ice pack 12 or the hot pack 13 is housed, most of the heat energy can be transferred to the inside by suppressing that the stored heat energy inside these packs is lost due to heat transfer to the outside of the shoe. It is preferably made of a material having a low heat transfer rate, such as rubber. By doing this, the formation of moisture due to the difference with the ambient temperature is suppressed in the storage space 40.

In addition, in the case of the cooling / heating means 10 using the thermoelectric element 11, since a power supply means 20 such as a battery for supplying power to the thermoelectric element 11 is required, the thermoelectric may be used according to the needs of the wearer. Further switches are needed to turn on / off the operation of the element 11. Such batteries and switches are preferably arranged together, and are preferably formed at the top of the shoe, ie in the instep or ankle, to prevent accidental on / off operation while walking and to minimize foreign body feelings to the wearer.

Although the above has been described with reference to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the present invention is not limited thereto. Any cooling / heating means can be used if the shoe can be provided with cooling and heating functions, and any form of heat source transfer capable of cooling and heating some or all of the shoe using the heat source obtained by the cooling / heating means. Of course, means can be used.

According to the present invention, it is possible to continuously cool and heat a predetermined area of the shoe even while walking or at rest. In addition, since cooling / heating means such as thermoelectric elements, ice packs or hot packs are installed on the upper portion of the shoe, there is little risk of breakage and breakdown during walking. In addition, since the heat source generated from the cooling / heating means is configured to be delivered to a desired area through the heat source transfer means surrounding the predetermined portion of the shoe, it is possible to effectively cool and heat a predetermined portion inside the shoe requiring temperature control. .

1 is a side cross-sectional view of a typical shoe consisting of a shoe sole and an upper.

2 is a partial perspective view of a shoe according to an embodiment of the present invention in which cooling and heating are performed by a thermoelectric element.

3 is a partial perspective view of a shoe according to another embodiment of the present invention in which cooling and heating are performed by an ice pack and / or a hot pack.

4 is a perspective view showing an arrangement of thermoelectric elements used in the embodiment of FIG.

5 is a perspective view showing an arrangement of an ice pack or a hot pack used in the embodiment of FIG.

6 to 8 are partial perspective views showing various embodiments of the heat source transfer means according to the present invention.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

1: shoes

5: upper

10: cooling / heating means

11: thermoelectric element

12: hot pack

13: ice pack

20: power supply means (battery)

30: heat source transfer means

40: space

41: cover

Claims (10)

In shoes composed of soles and uppers, Cooling / heating means installed at a predetermined portion of the upper and providing cooling and heating functions; A storage space for storing the cooling / heating means; A heat source transfer means connected to the cooling / heating means and extending to a predetermined region of the shoe to be temperature controlled and transferring the heat source provided by the cooling / heating means to the predetermined region; Shoes, characterized in that it comprises. The thermoelectric device of claim 1, wherein the cooling / heating means is a thermoelectric element supplied with power from a battery, and upper and lower portions of the thermoelectric element have a heat generating and endothermic function selectively according to a direction of a current supplied to the thermoelectric element; Shoes, characterized in that attached to each lower plate. 2. A shoe as set forth in claim 1 wherein said cooling / heating means is an ice pack having its own cooling function. The shoe as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cooling / heating means is a hot pack having a self-heating function. The heat source according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the heat source is heat energy, and the heat source transfer means is flexible made of metal or high quality heat conductive plastic for transferring heat energy to a predetermined part of the shoe. Shoes characterized by the thin plate. The air circulation passage according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the heat source is air temperature controlled by the cooling / heating means, and the heat source transmitting means causes air to be delivered to a predetermined area inside the shoe. The shoe which is characterized by being. The shoe of claim 5, wherein the flexible plate is configured to surround a predetermined area of the shoe to be cooled and heated according to the shape of the shoe. 6. A shoe as set forth in claim 5, wherein said flexible plate is a band or mesh plate that roundly surrounds a portion of the wearer's foot. The shoe as claimed in claim 6, wherein the air circulation passage comprises a thin flat tube covering a predetermined area of the shoe to be cooled and heated and communicating with the predetermined area. According to claim 3 or 4, The upper portion of the storage space is further provided with a cover for opening and closing the cover, characterized in that the cover is made of a material having a low heat transfer rate for keeping the storage space and moisture shoes.