novascotia
12-24-2008, 10:40 PM
http://thechronicleherald.ca/Metro/1097649.html
What frosty-fingered outdoorsman wouldn’t want to see this bad boy under the Christmas tree?
Defence scientists are looking for companies interested in commercializing a vest they developed for military snipers, helicopter flight engineers, vehicle gunners, medics and mechanics who need to work with their fingers when the mercury dips below freezing.
Dubbed the "torso heating for dexterity in the cold" vest, the battery-powered device is made up of a close-fitting garment and a control system.
"The control system monitors the wearer’s finger skin temperature and signals the heating vest to apply a specified amount of heat to the wearer’s torso, which results in increased blood flow to the extremities and thus heats the hands and fingers," say tendering documents issued Tuesday.
"This allows the wearer to use their hands to perform fine tasks without wearing bulky gloves and to operate in temperatures below freezing. The system can allow the wearer to go without gloves for extended periods as it continually heats the hands, in contrast to repeatedly taking off gloves when a task needs fine manual dexterity and then putting them back on when the hands get cold."
Users wear a high-tech ring that acts as a sensor, telling the vest, which contains heating elements, when to warm up the body, said John Frim, a thermal physiologist who works with the military’s research arm.
"We’re providing enough heat in the right place that the body thinks it’s getting too much heat," Mr. Frim said. "So in order for the body to lose the extra heat, it sends the warm blood out to the hands and feet, which are effectively the radiators of the body, to dissipate that heat."
He tested the vests in –25 C conditions with soldiers who took apart their rifles and put them back together again.
"You’re dressed warmly for the cold, but the real magic here is that you don’t need any gloves on and your hands stay warm."
The vests appear to reverse hypothermia, said Tony Rodgers, executive director of the Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers and Hunters.
"When the trunk gets cold, it draws the heat from the extremities into the core. So what this thing is doing is the very opposite," Mr. Rodgers said. "When it notices that the hands are getting cold, it extends the heat into the core, which allows more to go back to the extremities. That’s kind of neat, actually."
The vests could be useful for anyone who works outside in winter at places like the Halifax Shipyard, he said.
Ground search and rescue teams could also employ them, he said.
"I think it would be a popular item with hunters," said Mr. Rodgers, noting trappers and snowmobilers would also find them useful.
"My God, man, (they’d be good for) changing a snow tire on the side of the road."
The vests could also be worn while fishing early in the season, he said.
"In April and May, when it’s still quite cold, tying a fly on a line can be quite a chore when your fingers are cold and half frostbitten."
Defence scientists have even heard from a landscape painter keen on acquiring one of the vests.
The tender issued Tuesday is seeking companies interested in developing a marketing plan for the gizmo.
"They’re basically looking for a manufacturer who wants to take it on and start commercial production of it," said Martin Champoux, a spokesman for Defence Research and Development Canada.
He got to see the vest in action recently and compared its bulkiness to wearing a thick wool cardigan.
"I’m a hunter and I was thinking to myself, ‘Man, that would be great for moose hunting at the end of October,’ " Mr. Champoux said.
It has myriad applications for anyone who needs to use their fingers in the cold.
"Putting up Christmas lights," Mr. Champoux said. "That alone would be worth the money."
The agency has a lot of success with taking its inventions public, he said.
"You’d be stunned at the amount of stuff that we commercialize like this. We have relationships with well over 500 different businesses in Canada where we’re working together and they wind up commercializing the work that we do."
There’s no estimate yet as to how much consumers would have to shell out for the finger-heating vest.
"That’s going to depend entirely on whoever is producing it because we’ll give them the technology and they’ll give us royalties," Mr. Champoux said. "How they market it and how they would cost it — that would be up to them."
What frosty-fingered outdoorsman wouldn’t want to see this bad boy under the Christmas tree?
Defence scientists are looking for companies interested in commercializing a vest they developed for military snipers, helicopter flight engineers, vehicle gunners, medics and mechanics who need to work with their fingers when the mercury dips below freezing.
Dubbed the "torso heating for dexterity in the cold" vest, the battery-powered device is made up of a close-fitting garment and a control system.
"The control system monitors the wearer’s finger skin temperature and signals the heating vest to apply a specified amount of heat to the wearer’s torso, which results in increased blood flow to the extremities and thus heats the hands and fingers," say tendering documents issued Tuesday.
"This allows the wearer to use their hands to perform fine tasks without wearing bulky gloves and to operate in temperatures below freezing. The system can allow the wearer to go without gloves for extended periods as it continually heats the hands, in contrast to repeatedly taking off gloves when a task needs fine manual dexterity and then putting them back on when the hands get cold."
Users wear a high-tech ring that acts as a sensor, telling the vest, which contains heating elements, when to warm up the body, said John Frim, a thermal physiologist who works with the military’s research arm.
"We’re providing enough heat in the right place that the body thinks it’s getting too much heat," Mr. Frim said. "So in order for the body to lose the extra heat, it sends the warm blood out to the hands and feet, which are effectively the radiators of the body, to dissipate that heat."
He tested the vests in –25 C conditions with soldiers who took apart their rifles and put them back together again.
"You’re dressed warmly for the cold, but the real magic here is that you don’t need any gloves on and your hands stay warm."
The vests appear to reverse hypothermia, said Tony Rodgers, executive director of the Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers and Hunters.
"When the trunk gets cold, it draws the heat from the extremities into the core. So what this thing is doing is the very opposite," Mr. Rodgers said. "When it notices that the hands are getting cold, it extends the heat into the core, which allows more to go back to the extremities. That’s kind of neat, actually."
The vests could be useful for anyone who works outside in winter at places like the Halifax Shipyard, he said.
Ground search and rescue teams could also employ them, he said.
"I think it would be a popular item with hunters," said Mr. Rodgers, noting trappers and snowmobilers would also find them useful.
"My God, man, (they’d be good for) changing a snow tire on the side of the road."
The vests could also be worn while fishing early in the season, he said.
"In April and May, when it’s still quite cold, tying a fly on a line can be quite a chore when your fingers are cold and half frostbitten."
Defence scientists have even heard from a landscape painter keen on acquiring one of the vests.
The tender issued Tuesday is seeking companies interested in developing a marketing plan for the gizmo.
"They’re basically looking for a manufacturer who wants to take it on and start commercial production of it," said Martin Champoux, a spokesman for Defence Research and Development Canada.
He got to see the vest in action recently and compared its bulkiness to wearing a thick wool cardigan.
"I’m a hunter and I was thinking to myself, ‘Man, that would be great for moose hunting at the end of October,’ " Mr. Champoux said.
It has myriad applications for anyone who needs to use their fingers in the cold.
"Putting up Christmas lights," Mr. Champoux said. "That alone would be worth the money."
The agency has a lot of success with taking its inventions public, he said.
"You’d be stunned at the amount of stuff that we commercialize like this. We have relationships with well over 500 different businesses in Canada where we’re working together and they wind up commercializing the work that we do."
There’s no estimate yet as to how much consumers would have to shell out for the finger-heating vest.
"That’s going to depend entirely on whoever is producing it because we’ll give them the technology and they’ll give us royalties," Mr. Champoux said. "How they market it and how they would cost it — that would be up to them."