• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.31 no.6 s.165
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• pp.955-965
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• 2007

Safety helmets are used widely in various industries by workers since they are legally required to wear them. However, thermal discomfort is one of the major complaints from helmet users. To relieve this problem, frozen gelled packs can be considered for use inside the helmets. In this paper, tests were performed on humans to evaluate the physiological strains of wearing safety helmets and to investigate the effects of using frozen gelled packs inside the helmets. Experiments were conducted in a climatic chamber of WBGT $33{\pm}1^{\circ}C$ under four differed experimental conditions: 1) not wearing a safety helmet(NH); 2) wearing a safety helmet with frozen gelled pack A(HA); 3) wearing a safety helmet with frozen gelled pack B(HB); and 4) wearing only a safety helmet(OH). The results were as follows. First, when comparing NH with OH, physiological responses such as $\bar{T}_{sk},\;T_r$, HR and sweat rate were significantly higher in OH and subjective sensations were reported as less hot and more comfortable than NH(p<.05). Second, in regard to the frozen gelled packs inserted inside the safety helmets, some physiological responses in HA were different from those in HB, according to the two different types of packs. HA was hotter, more uncomfortable and less exhausted than HB. However, result from both HA and HB were lower than those from OH in terms of temperature and humidity inside safety helmet, sweat rate, $T_r$ increase, heat storage(p<.05). When wearing safety helmets with frozen gelled packs, it was shown that heat strain can be alleviated. These results are expected to help millions of workers who complain that wearing safety helmets is uncomfortable and messy.