Presenting a new approach to architect footwear as a communication and energy-transporting platform for personalized smart living. This is done by integrating the most advanced technologies today, along with some known technologies still under development, to provide solutions to power on demand for all personal and wearable devices.

The systems, methods, and apparatuses disclosed in this invention make our personal and wearable devices smarter, thereby providing higher practical functions and more efficiency to our everyday lives.

The present disclosure is related to energy-harvesting articles of footwear, and associated components and methods. In some embodiments, an energy-harvesting article of footwear comprises a compressible bladder, a pneumatic motor fluidically connected to the compressible bladder, and an electric generator operatively coupled to the pneumatic motor. In some embodiments, energy is harvested by compressing a compressible bladder and flowing fluid from the compressible bladder through a pneumatic motor to generate power. Certain embodiments relate to pneumatic motor designs, and/or to methods of flowing fluid input through pneumatic motors.

A footwear impulse-momentum device includes a first momentum actuator, a second momentum actuator, a position sensor, and a processing system, which are dimensioned to fit within a shoe sole. The first momentum actuator is coupled to receive a first control signal and is configured, upon receipt thereof, to move between a first position and a second position. The second momentum actuator is coupled to receive a second control signal and is configured, upon receipt thereof, to move between a third position and a fourth position spaced. The position sensor is configured to sense a position of the sole of the shoe and supply a shoe position signal representative thereof. The processing system is configured to receive the shoe position signal and is operable, in response thereto, to selectively generate and supply the first and second control signals to the first and second momentum actuators, respectively.

It is an object of the present invention to array and utilize piezoelectric generators. It is also an object of the invention to implement properly configured piezoelectric generators into applications that can recapture expelled kinetic energy that is otherwise wasted. Particularly, piezoelectric generators, or arrays, may be, for example, placed in shoes, clothing, tires, roads, and sidewalks in order to recapture the energy expelled in everyday human activities (e.g., walking, moving, and driving).

Described are shoes for ball sports including an upper having an outer surface. An actuator is configured to change at least one surface property of a portion of the outer surface of the upper, and a sensor is configured to be sensitive to movements of the shoe. A processing unit is connected to the actuator and the sensor and configured to process sensor data retrieved from the sensor and to cause the actuator to change the at least one surface property of the portion of the outer surface of the upper if a predetermined event is detected in the sensor data.

A monitoring system includes a shoe and a sole integrated into the shoe. The monitoring system also includes a connection mechanism attached to an underside of the sole and is shaped to connect the sole to a pedal. A pressure sensor is incorporated into the shoe that senses a force exerted on the pedal when the shoe is connected to the pedal through the connection mechanism.

A modular article of footwear has a shock absorbing insert placed between the insole and the outsole thereof, for example at the heel. The insert includes a spring carrier having upper and lower portions, each having a plurality seats for receiving a respective ends of respective coil springs. Each of the springs extends between said upper and lower portions and is captured therebetween. A pair of opposed permanent magnets generates a separating force which supplements the supporting force of the mechanical springs. The insert may also contain a device for converting mechanical energy to electrical energy.

Provided is a smart insole including a support layer; a plurality of pressure sensors provided to the support layer and configured to sense a pressure; a plurality of vibrators provided to the support layer and configured to generate a vibration; and a controller configured to determine a center of pressure (COP) based on a pressure sensed by each of the plurality of pressure sensors and to control the plurality of vibrators based on a positional relationship between a setting point and the COP.

The pivotable footwear including a front portion, a heel portion, a flexible sole defining a channel extending across the flexible sole, a shoe upper attached to the flexible sole, and a lockable hinge mechanism disposed within the channel. The lockable hinge has an unlocked position wherein the heel portion of said footwear is free to pivot about the channel relative to the front portion of the footwear, and a locked position wherein the heel portion of the footwear is locked into position relative to the front portion of said footwear. The lockable hinge mechanism is electronically actuated and battery operated and controlled to move between the locked position and the unlocked position by actuation of an electronic remote control. That is, actuation of the electronic remote control causes the hinge to move the footwear to an open, foot insertion position and a wearable locked position.

A footwear apparatus has a bottom portion on which a foot of a user is positioned. The bottom portion has a heel portion and a toe portion. Further, the footwear apparatus has a rear portion operably attached to the heel portion. Additionally, the footwear apparatus has a force-to-energy conversion device that is operably attached to the heel portion in proximity to the rear portion. The force-to-energy conversion device receives one or more external forces from an environment external to the shoe. Further, the force-to-energy conversion device converts the one or more external forces to electrical energy. Moreover, the footwear apparatus has a removable power supply assembly that is operably connected to the rear portion. The removable power supply assembly has a power supply that stores the electrical energy.