Temperature regulatory fabrics, systems and applications

• US 10,064,439 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2014
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Its Kool, LLC
• Original Assignee: Its Kool, LLC
• Inventors: Ganter, William A., Arnold, Anthony Peter, Ortiz, Sean
• Primary Examiner(s): PELHAM, JOSEPH MOORE
• Application Number:
  US14/472,342
• Publication Number:
  US 20150208738A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,468 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 13/005 with controlled temperature
• CPC Class Codes: A47G 9/0215 with cooling or heating means electric blankets H05B3/34
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2250/02 2 layers
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2250/20 All layers being fibrous or filamentary
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2255/02 on fibrous or filamentary layer
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2437/00 Clothing anti-ballistic clothing B32B2571/02
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2479/00 Furniture upholstery B32B2601/00
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2535/00 Medical equipment, e.g. bandage, prostheses, catheter medical patches B32B2556/00
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 5/26 another layer next to it also being fibrous or filamentary relative arrangement of fibres or filaments of different layers B32B5/12
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 7/12 using interposed adhesives or interposed materials with bonding properties
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 21/04 reversible
• CPC Class Codes: H10N 10/13 characterised by the heat-exchanging means at the junction

Abstract

A temperature regulating fabric formed from micro porous inner and outer layers of fabric laminated around a plurality of totally independent TE devices together with antennae and energy harvesting electronics within, all deposited upon a flexible substrate to form a thermal module. These completely independent thermal modules are positioned at preselected locations intermediate the laminated inner and outer fabric layers to form the temperature regulating fabric, which is used to construct temperature regulating devices powered by harvested ambient RF energy for both cooling and warming applications.

Claims

1. A temperature regulatory fabric comprising:

an inner micro porous fabric layer;

an outer micro porous fabric layer;

a plurality of independent thermal modules each incorporating a TE device and a plurality of antennae, each of the plurality of antennae having electronic elements operatively connected thereto, the electronic elements and each of the plurality of antennae being adapted to provide direct current (DC) power to a TE device by harvesting RF radiation;

each independent thermal module being positioned at a preselected location intermediate the inner and outer fabric layers, the inner and outer fabric layers being laminated to one another to form the temperature regulating fabric.

2. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 1 wherein each independent thermal module includes a cool surface and a warm surface.

3. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 2 wherein each independent thermal module is coated with a thermal insulating layer that covers the entire module except for the cool and the warm surfaces, the thermal insulating layer being structured and arranged to impede heat conducted by a TE device from flowing back through the fabric to a source of the heat.

4. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 3 wherein each independent thermal module is coated with a heat conductive spreading layer on the cool surface.

5. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 3 wherein each independent thermal module is coated with a heat conductive spreading layer on the warm surface.

6. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 3 wherein each independent thermal module is coated with a heat conductive spreading layer on both the cool and the warm surfaces.

7. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 1 further including at least one thermocouple operatively connected to at least one of the plurality of thermal modules laminated within the fabric, the at least one thermocouple being structured and arranged to convert ambient air heat and heat from a warm surface of the at least one thermal module into DC power.

8. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 1 wherein each of the plurality of independent thermal modules are formed on a flexible substrate.

9. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 8 wherein the flexible substrate is laminated intermediate the inner and outer micro porous fabric layers.

10. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 9 further including means for operatively connecting the flexible substrate to the inner and an outer micro porous fabric layers.

11. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 10 wherein the means for operatively connecting comprises water resistant adhesive.

12. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 1 wherein the fabric is reversible in order to transfer heat in the opposite direction.

13. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 1 wherein the radiation being harvested is in the form of cellular communications radiation.

14. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 1 wherein the radiation being harvested is in the form of Wi-Fi communications radiation.

15. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 1 wherein the radiation being harvested is partially supplied by a plurality of oscillators transmitting radiation at frequencies corresponding to at least one antenna within the thermal module.

16. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 15 wherein each of the plurality of oscillators are enclosed in a radio screen cage that surrounds the temperature regulating fabric so as to not cause RF interference to other nearby spectrum uses.

17. A temperature regulating apparatus comprising:

a temperature regulatory fabric, the fabric including

an inner micro porous fabric layer;

an outer micro porous fabric layer;

a plurality of independent thermal modules each incorporating a TE device and a plurality of antennae, each of the plurality of antennae having electronic elements operatively connected thereto, the electronic elements and each of the plurality of antenna being adapted to provide direct current (DC) power to a TE device by harvesting RF radiation;

each independent thermal module being positioned at a preselected location intermediate the inner and outer fabric layers, the inner and outer fabric layers being laminated to one another to form the temperature regulating fabric.

18. The temperature regulating apparatus of claim 17 wherein the apparatus comprises a wearable garment.

19. The temperature regulating apparatus of claim 18 wherein the plurality of thermal modules are structured and arranged to cool a wearer of the garment, the wearer having a skin, by conducting heat from the wearer'"'"'s skin through the TE device whereupon it is dissipated by convection through the outer micro porous fabric layer to the ambient air.

20. The temperature regulating apparatus of claim 18 wherein the plurality of thermal modules are structured and arranged to warm a wearer of the garment, the wearer having a skin, by absorbing heat delivered by convection from the ambient air through the outer micro porous fabric layer and the TE device for transfer through the inner micro porous fabric layer to the wearer'"'"'s skin.

21. A temperature regulatory fabric comprising:

an inner micro porous fabric layer;

an outer micro porous fabric layer;

a plurality of flexible substrate members disposed at preselected locations intermediate the inner and outer micro porous fabric layers;

a plurality of independent thermal modules aligned on and operatively connected to each of the plurality of flexible substrate members, each of the plurality of independent thermal modules including a TE device and a plurality of antennae, each of the plurality of antennae having electronic elements operatively connected thereto, the antennae and associated electronic elements each being structured and arranged to harvest alternating current (AC) RF radiation waveforms and to convert the harvested RF radiation waveforms to direct current (DC) to power the TE device;

the inner micro porous fabric layer, the outer micro porous fabric layer and the plurality of flexible substrate members being laminated to one another to form the temperature regulatory fabric.

22. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 21 further including a heat transfer opening formed in the flexible substrate members beneath each of the plurality of TE devices.

23. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 22 wherein the electronic elements operatively connected to each of the plurality of antenna include a capacitor and a diode.

24. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 23 wherein each of the plurality of capacitors has a specific capacitor value and each of the plurality of antennae has a length and a shape, the antennae and electronic elements operatively connected thereto being selectively tunable to receive and to process different RF radiation bands by changing antenna length and/or shape and/or the capacitor value.

25. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 24 wherein the DC outputs of each of the plurality of antennae operatively connected to each TE device are additive.

26. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 25 wherein each independent thermal module includes a cool surface and a warm surface.

27. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 26 wherein each independent thermal module is coated with a thermal insulating layer that covers the entire module except for the cool and the warm surfaces, the thermal insulating layer being structured and arranged to impede heat conducted by a TE device from flowing back through the fabric to a source of the heat.

28. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 27 wherein each independent thermal module is coated with a heat conductive spreading layer on the cool surface.

29. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 27 wherein each independent thermal module is coated with a heat conductive spreading layer on the warm surface.

30. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 27 wherein each independent thermal module is coated with a heat conductive spreading layer on both the cool and the warm surfaces.

31. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 21 further including at least one thermocouple operatively connected to at least one of the plurality of thermal modules laminated within the fabric, the at least one thermocouple being structured and arranged to convert ambient air heat and heat from a warm surface of the at least one thermal module into DC power.

32. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 21 further including a water-resistant adhesive applied to each of the plurality of independent thermal modules whereby each of the thermal modules is retained in position.

33. The temperature regulatory fabric of claim 21 further including at least one oscillator adapted to transmit RF energy at a frequency which corresponds to a frequency that at least one of the plurality of antennae may receive.

34. The temperature regulating apparatus of claim 21 wherein the apparatus comprises a wearable garment.

35. The temperature regulating apparatus of claim 34 wherein the plurality of thermal modules are structured and arranged to cool a wearer of the garment, the wearer having a skin, by conducting heat from the wearer'"'"'s skin through the TE device whereupon it is dissipated by convection through the outer micro porous fabric layer to the ambient air.

36. The temperature regulating apparatus of claim 34 wherein the plurality of thermal modules are structured and arranged to warm a wearer of the garment, the wearer having a skin, by absorbing heat delivered by convection from the ambient air through the outer micro porous fabric layer and the TE device for transfer through the inner micro porous fabric layer to the wearer'"'"'s skin.