Protective vest warns construction workers of overheating
An intelligent protective vest monitors the heartbeat and body temperature and sounds the alarm via smartphone in the event of critical values
A new garment is designed to increase safety on the construction site: That's because workers are often exposed to high temperatures, whether from sunlight or the use of heat-producing equipment. The smart vest is equipped with sensors that monitor heartbeat and body temperature and warn the wearer via smartphone if levels are hazardous to health. The vest was developed at the Australian RMIT University .
Threatened construction industry
"Heat-related illnesses are serious threats in the construction industry and can lead to death," warns vest developer Ruwini Edirisinghe about heat in construction. "A big part of the problem is that some workers don't recognize the early warning signs. This technological solution will hopefully change that." It simply transmits data via Bluetooth to the worker's smartphone or supervisor for a quick response to threats.
That's because construction workers are in a life-threatening trade - in Australia, construction workers accounted for 12 percent of work-related fatalities from 2013 to 2014. And: According to the climate report of the NASA temperatures over the past ten years have been at a high not seen for 100 years. Edirisinghe plans to add smart glasses to the vest in the future. These will make it possible to have warnings about one's own state of health right in front of one's eyes.
Modern health promotion
According to RMIT University, the project is believed to be one of the first to look so specifically at heat safety for construction workers. Edirisinghe explains, "There are researchers working on smart anti-heat T-shirts using advanced materials. But these don't have sensors built in, making them incapable of monitoring health or providing health data immediately."
(Source: Press release)
