Footwear temperature control method and apparatus

Abstract

Disclosed herein are temperature control elements for controllably regulating and/or altering the temperature of the footwear and thus the wearer's foot. In various embodiments, a temperature control element (TCE) may be housed in the vamp liner of the footwear, and a control unit may be housed in the footwear tongue. In some embodiments, the control unit may include or be coupled to a user interface, which also may be housed in the footwear tongue. In some embodiments, a pocket may be provided in the footwear tongue for receiving a power source configured to power the system, and in various embodiments the pocket also may be used for routing electrical conduits between the various components.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A temperature control system for footwear comprising:
 a vamp liner comprising a temperature control element adapted to alter the temperature of the footwear;   a power source adapted to couple to and provide power to the temperature control element; and   a control unit coupled to a tongue of the footwear, wherein the control unit is adapted to couple to the power source and control the temperature control element.   
     
     
         2 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , further comprising a user interface operatively coupled to the control unit. 
     
     
         3 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , wherein the control unit comprises a user interface. 
     
     
         4 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , further comprising a charging port adapted to allow the power source to be recharged. 
     
     
         5 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , wherein the power source is removably coupled to the footwear. 
     
     
         6 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , wherein the vamp liner is removably coupled to the footwear. 
     
     
         7 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , wherein the control unit is removable from the footwear. 
     
     
         8 . The temperature control system of  claim 5 , wherein the tongue comprises a pocket adapted to receive the power source. 
     
     
         9 . The temperature control system of  claim 8 , wherein the tongue is further adapted to receive one or more electrical conduits coupling the vamp liner to the control unit. 
     
     
         10 . The temperature control system of  claim 9 , wherein the tongue is further adapted to receive one or more electrical conduits coupling the control unit to the power source. 
     
     
         11 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , wherein the temperature control element comprises a heating and/or cooling element. 
     
     
         12 . The temperature control system of  claim 11 , wherein the heating and/or cooling element comprises a conductor. 
     
     
         13 . The temperature control system of  claim 12 , wherein the conductor is woven into the vamp liner. 
     
     
         14 . The temperature control system of  claim 13 , wherein the conductor comprises a carbon fiber. 
     
     
         15 . The temperature control system of  claim 13 , wherein the conductor comprises a conductive yarn. 
     
     
         16 . The temperature control system of  claim 12 , wherein the conductor comprises a metallic conductor coupled to the vamp liner. 
     
     
         17 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , wherein the control unit comprises an integrated circuit based system, and wherein the integrated circuit based system is configured to regulate the current provided to the temperature control element by the power source. 
     
     
         18 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , wherein the power source is a battery. 
     
     
         19 . The temperature control system of  claim 18 , wherein the battery is rechargeable. 
     
     
         20 . The temperature control system of  claim 1 , wherein the control unit is programmable. 
     
     
         21 . The temperature control system of  claim 4 , wherein the charging port comprises a USB port or micro USB port. 
     
     
         22 . A temperature control footwear system comprising:
 an article of footwear comprising a vamp liner and a tongue; wherein the vamp liner comprises a temperature control element adapted to alter the temperature of the footwear; and wherein the tongue comprises a control unit/user interface; and   a power source removably coupled to the footwear and adapted to removably couple to and provide power to the temperature control element; wherein the control unit is adapted to removably couple to the power source and allow a user to control the temperature control element.   
     
     
         23 . The temperature control footwear system of  claim 22 , further comprising a charging port adapted to allow the power source to be recharged. 
     
     
         24 . The temperature control footwear system of  claim 22 , wherein the tongue of the footwear comprises a pocket adapted to receive the power source.