Liquid circulation cooling vest for factory- and warehouse workers

Abstract

This graduation report describes the design of an ice cooled liquid circulation cooling vest for INUTEQ, a company specialized in personal cooling. The new design, the INUTEQ ICE, is made for warehouse and factory workers. They need cooling vests, because they work in large buildings with flat roofs. Large buildings cannot be cooled by air-conditioning anymore and the sun can heat them up to tropical temperatures. Additionally, the temperature may, in some cases, be increased by the production processes inside. Working in the heat can decrease productivity, performance, comfort and safety. The physical work these people perform also increases their chances of heat related illnesses such as: heat rash, heat cramps or heat exhaustion. In some cases, overheating can even lead to a heat stroke.
One of the solutions to cool people down is with cooling garments. The INUTEQ ICE is an improvement on traditional liquid circulation garments, which cool by running the water through silicone tubes. The new design makes use of open cell foam pads to increase the heat exchange between the cold water and the body. The developed cooling pad technology was found to have a nearly three times as high cooling capacity per unit area compared to liquid circulating cooling technology currently on the market. In the same experiment, the cooling capacity per unit area of the new pad technology was found to be similar to existing 6.5°C PCM packs and higher than 15°C and 21°C. The design has the potential to cool for longer than the 6.5°C PCM packs. Contrary to evaporation and air based cooling vest, the INUTEQ ICE is able to be used underneath enclosed clothing and in other high humid environments.
The project contained three phases, an analysis phase, a development phase and an evaluation phase. In the analysis phase, relevant information about cooling garments and the target group is gathered. This information is brought together in a list of requirements. In the development phase, the cooling pad technology is developed and the cooling method is defined. The development phase ends with the first concept of the INUTEQ ICE. In the evaluation phase, a working prototype was made and user tested in the appropriate context, which provided useful insights towards the final concept. The evaluation phase also contains the previously mentioned cooling capacity test and recommendations to continue the project.
The end result of the project is a promising final concept, with working prototype. The INUTEQ ICE has the potential to become a product that, in humid environments, performs better than alternative cooling garments. With further development it can be used by different target groups, not only factory and warehouse workers. It seems likely that a finished version of the INUTEQ ICE can add value to INUTEQ’s product range.