Cooling Garment Airflow Design for Persistent Contact Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cooling garments lose their cold sensation over time due to thermal equilibrium with the body, leading to a heatful feeling, and often require double fabric structures that inflate with external air, causing discomfort when fans are stopped.
Innovation Solution
A cooling garment with a fabric having a total fineness of 100 dtex or less, moisture absorption-desorption parameter ΔMR of not less than 3.0%, and air permeability of 10 cc/cm²/sec or higher, equipped with fans that generate an air flow between the garment and body, using centrifugal or crossflow fans with a total weight of 200 g or less to maintain contact cold sensation and reduce heatful feeling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If a cooling garment uses fabric with high thermal conductivity to provide contact cold sensation, then the initial cold sensation is improved, but thermal equilibrium is established with the body over time causing the cold sensation to be lost and heatful feeling to occur
Solution Approach 1:
The garment introduces dynamic air circulation between the fabric and body surface using fans, creating a moving cooling system rather than static thermal conduction. This dynamic air flow continuously replaces heated air with cooler ambient air, preventing thermal equilibrium and maintaining persistent cold sensation throughout prolonged wear.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention utilizes pneumatic principles by incorporating fans to generate forced air circulation in the space between the garment fabric and the body. This air flow mechanism actively transports cool air to the skin surface and removes warm, humid air, providing sustained cooling effect without relying solely on thermal conduction through the fabric.
2Duration of action of stationary object
If a cooling garment uses double fabric structure with air circulation to maintain cooling, then persistent cooling is improved, but the garment inflates with external air causing discomfort when fans are stopped
Solution Approach 1:
The garment implements local air circulation only in the specific space between the fabric and body surface where cooling is needed, rather than inflating the entire garment structure. This localized approach allows cooling airflow exactly where required while maintaining normal garment fit and comfort in all other areas, even when fans are not operating.
3Loss of energy
If a cooling garment uses fans to generate air flow for cooling, then heat removal is improved, but the device complexity and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The garment employs small-scale, low-power fans that provide partial air circulation sufficient for cooling the body surface area they cover. Rather than attempting to cool the entire body uniformly, the system uses multiple small fans distributed across the garment, each handling a localized area, thereby reducing individual fan complexity and weight while achieving effective overall cooling.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The garment provides persistent contact cold sensation and reduces heatful feeling by allowing the body and garment to contact at a preferred frequency through air circulation, suitable for wear in offices and homes.
Implementation Method 1
These materials are designed to increase the thermal conductivity from the skin by using fibers having good thermal conductivity
Implementation Method 2
moisture absorption-desorption parameter ΔMR of not less than 3.0%
Implementation Method 3
to cool the body by evaporating sweat from the body with air blown from the fans and thereby utilizing an effect of removing vaporization heat from the surroundings at the time of sweat evaporation
Implementation Method 4
to cool the body by increasing a temperature gradient in the vicinity of the body surface with air circulation
Implementation Method 5
to cool the body by evaporating sweat from the body with air blown from the fans and thereby utilizing an effect of removing vaporization heat from the surroundings
Data Source
AI summary
[Problem] To provide a garment that not only has excellent contact cold sensation and gives persistent contact cold sensation but also can reduce heatful feeling and is suitably wearable in wearing scenes such as offices and homes. [Solution] Provided is a garment that includes one or plural fans for taking external air into a space between the garment and the body. A fabric of the garment has a contact cold/warm sensation value Q-max of 0.30 W/cm2 or larger and a basis weight of 250 g/m2 or less.