Apparatus and method for “seeing” foot inside of shoe to determine the proper fit of the shoe
First Claim
1. A method for determining proper fit of a shoe, comprising the step of taking a thermal infrared electronic image of at least an outside portion of a shoe having a foot therein, and further comprising the steps of finding thermal patterns in the thermal infrared electronic image, determining from said thermal patterns where the foot lies, determining from said thermal patterns where the shoe lies in relation to the foot, and determining from said thermal patterns where spaces exist between the foot and the shoe.
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Abstract
A thermographic infrared apparatus and method for seeing, and thus measuring, a foot inside of a shoe. The apparatus includes one or more thermographic instruments aimed at a base for capturing one or more thermographic images or fields of view of a shoe on the base and thus the heat transferred to the shoe from the foot. The apparatus further includes a display mounted above the base and aimed at the eye level of a person standing on the base such that the person can determine from the thermographic image how well the shoe or shoes fit. The method includes one or more of the steps of taking a thermal infrared image of a shoe on a foot, taking a thermal infrared image of a foot having no shoe thereon, taking a thermal infrared image of a shoe having no foot therein, taking a thermal infrared image from a first direction, taking a thermal infrared image from a second direction to capture surfaces hidden from the first direction, and then comparing one or more of the thermal infrared images. Other imaging methods for determining proper fit of a shoe include low dose x-ray, backscattering x-ray, microwave, acoustic, radio, and ultrasound imaging methods.
43 Citations
23 Claims
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1. A method for determining proper fit of a shoe, comprising the step of taking a thermal infrared electronic image of at least an outside portion of a shoe having a foot therein, and further comprising the steps of finding thermal patterns in the thermal infrared electronic image, determining from said thermal patterns where the foot lies, determining from said thermal patterns where the shoe lies in relation to the foot, and determining from said thermal patterns where spaces exist between the foot and the shoe.
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2. A method for determining proper fit of a shoe, comprising the steps of:
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taking a first thermal infrared image of at least a portion of a shoe having no foot therein; taking a second thermal infrared image of at least an outside portion of the shoe having a foot therein; and comparing the first and second thermal infrared images; wherein each of the first and second thermal infrared images are electronic images. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4)
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5. A method for determining proper fit of a shoe, comprising the steps of:
- taking a first thermal infrared image from a first direction of at least a portion of a shoe having a foot therein and taking a second thermal infrared image from a second direction of at least an outside portion of the shoe having a foot therein to capture surfaces of the shoe hidden from the first thermal infrared image, wherein each of the first and second thermal infrared images are electronic images.
- View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8)
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9. A thermal infrared apparatus for the perception of a foot inside of a shoe for determining proper fit of the shoe, comprising:
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a) a base having a location upon which the shoe is placed; b) a thermal infrared instrument aimable at the base, wherein the thermal infrared instrument is capable of detecting thermal patterns on an outside surface of the shoe, wherein the thermal infrared instrument is a camera instrument; and c) a display aimable at a person wearing the shoe on the base, wherein the display is in communication with the thermal instrument and is capable of displaying said thermal patterns; d) whereby a person wearing the shoe can wiggle her foot to watch, via changing thermal patterns on the display, movement of her foot inside of the shoe. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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- 18. A method for determining proper fit of a shoe, comprising the steps of finding temperature differences on an outer surface of a shoe and correlating said temperature differences with foot position inside of the shoe, wherein said step of correlating said temperature differences with foot position inside of the shoe comprises the steps of finding thermal patterns in said temperature differences, determining from said thermal patterns where the foot lies, determining from said thermal patterns where the shoe lies in relation to the foot, and determining from said thermal patterns where spaces exist between the foot and the shoe such that said temperature differences are correlated with foot position inside of the shoe.
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20. A method for determining proper fit of a shoe, comprising the steps of:
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a) perceiving a position of a foot inside of a shoe and taking an image of the position perceived; b) digitally processing the image; and c) showing the image that has been digitally processed on a monitor. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23)
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Specification