Cooling system for soldiers ?

trueno86 SG

DSO Laboratories develop 'cool' suit for SAF soldiers to prevent heat injuries
By Dominique Loh, Channel NewsAsia

SINGAPORE : DSO National Laboratories are literally turning up the heat on medical research in the SAF to find ways of keeping soldiers cool and prevent heat injuries.

It is important to keep a cool head in the heat of battle because in Singapore's tropical environment, a heat stroke can be life threatening.

Elaine Tan, Military Physiology Programme, DSO National Lab, said: "Any temperature above 30 degrees is an environment which is not compensable...where your core temperature keeps rising regardless of the type of exercise you're doing. Beyond a 39.5 degree core temperature, the person is at higher risk of heat injury."

The initial signs of a heat stroke are subtle: blurred vision, tiredness and nausea but if left unchecked a soldier can lose consciousness and even die.

An air-conditioned suit is no longer so far fetched; in fact it is already here.

The challenge for researchers at DSO was to find a way to keep soldiers cool in extreme conditions especially those wearing heavy biohazard or bomb protection gear.

Their solution is a body suit which weighs about 2.5 kilogrammes that circulates cool air and water.

Ms Tan said: "Encapsulating suits create micro-climate conditions and the suits are used in chemical bio-defence. The humidity and temperature build up within a suit, which exposes the body to higher heat strain, so in such a situation, such suits are effective because it removes heat within the suit. It allows sustained exercise within such environments for longer time."

But is not drinking more water a much easier and cheaper solution?

Ms Tan said: "There is a medically recognised condition called hyponatraemia, by drinking too much water it is actually dangerous. We try to determine how much water is safe, in order to keep core temperature low to sustain exercise and avoid hyponatraemia or over drinking."

The cooling suit has attracted commercial interest and DSO has engaged a private company to mass produce it.

Who knows, one day it may just be standard issue for all soldiers. - CNA

wuming78 SG

interesting. part of the advanced combatman project i think.

carrying additional weight to keep cool.. hm.. wonder wat happens if the air con breaks down?

wuming78 SG

ADVANCING DEFENCE MEDICAL RESEARCH THROUGH JOINT COLLABORATION: STATE-OF-THE-ART RESEARCH COMPLEX OPENS AT NUS CAMPUS

More than 200 scientists, researchers and doctors will synergise their efforts to develop and harness advanced capabilities in human sciences, biomedical sciences and chem-bio defence to ensure that the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) servicemen are protected from chem-bio hazards, as well as to manage their health and enhance their performance, on and off the battlefield.

RADM(NS) Teo Chee Hean, Minister for Defence, officiated at todays opening of the DSO (Kent Ridge) Building and the SAF Military Medicine Institute (MMI). The Building houses the Defence Medical & Environmental Research Institute @ DSO National Laboratories ([email protected]), the SAFs Military Medicine Institute (MMI) and some research laboratories of the NUS.

Said Mr Quek Gim Pew, Chief Executive Officer, DSO: The DSO (Kent Ridge) Building is DSOs third and latest research complex. We hope that this building will become the focal point for joint collaboration in human sciences research, which will eventually translate into enhanced safety, survival and performance of our national servicemen.

In addition, this new research complex provides a critical boost towards strengthening the defence and national security ecosystem, which includes DSO, Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), Singapore Technologies (ST) Engineering, Temasek Laboratories, local universities, and the research institutes under the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR).

Said Mr Quek Gim Pew, Chief Executive Officer, DSO: By co-locating our research facilities with other research institutes such as the NUS, we hope to promote greater scientific exchange and interaction between our scientists and the researchers from other organisations. We are confident that this synergistic partnership will create exciting opportunities for DSO researchers and scientists to generate critical capabilities and unique solutions that meet the SAFs demanding and unique operation requirements.

The DSO (Kent Ridge) Building, which spans a total gross floor area of 21,000 square metres over 14 floors, was conceptualised in 1997. The groundbreaking ceremony for the building was officiated by Deputy Prime Minister, Dr Tony Tan, on 29 January 2001.

[email protected] currently occupies six floors of this new research complex. The mission of [email protected] is to spearhead, coordinate and conduct biomedical, human sciences, environmental protection and chem-bio defence research to enhance the safety, survival and performance of the SAF personnel. [email protected] has made significant contributions towards defence and national security in three key areas - developing defences against against chem-bio threats; protecting the SAF servicemen against injury and wounds; and enhancing soldier combat effectiveness under extreme battlefield conditions.

Integrating its various critical services under one roof, the MMI occupies four floors in the DSO (Kent Ridge) Building. The MMI is now a one-stop, servicemen-centric quality health care service provider in deployment medical support, musculoskeletal injury care and rehabilitation, psychological care, trauma stress support, visual care and performance enhancement, as well as cardio-pulmonary assessment and support.

While DSO spearheads the development of new technology in defence science, the MMI serves as a portal to introduce new technologies and capabilities into the military healthcare system. The MMIs role in the defence ecosystem is to ensure the efficient sustenance of our soldiers through the delivery of quality healthcare in areas of specialist medical and dental care as well as medical grading.

Some of the [email protected]s current research work include:

Studies on heat stress: To mitigate heat load as well as to prevent and manage heat stroke, researchers at [email protected] have developed an individual cooling vest based on evaporative and conductive cooling principles, as well as a core-body temperature heat-stress monitor. These products have undergone field trials in the SAF with encouraging results.

Myopia studies in DSO: Currently, more than 80% of the SAF pre-enlistees are myopic with the trend increasing at an alarming rate. To address the high endemic rates of myopia among SAF servicemen and in our population, [email protected] adopts a multi-pronged approach to tackle this trait. This involves:
(a) Studying the genetic causes and mechanisms of myopia development
(b) Quantifying the impact of myopia on operational and combat activities
(c) Studying effective methods for correcting myopia suitable for the soldier.

Studies on neck injury: DSO leads a team of local researchers from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and the National University of Singapore (NUS) to collaborate with the Air Force Research Laboratory of the USA on a project to mitigate injuries to pilots during manoeuvres such as ejection. This collaboration promises enhanced safety for both Singapore and US pilots.
Said BG(DR) Wong Yue Sie, Chief of Medical Corps, Singapore Armed Forces: [email protected] is MMIs strategic partner. MMI works closely with [email protected] to transfer the lab research into the field. This include [email protected]s studies in vision care and myopia, obesity management, soldier injury prevention, performance enhancement, psychological resilience and predisposition.

The completion of the DSO (Kent Ridge) Building marks an important milestone in human sciences research in Singapore. More than just the completion of a building, the opening of the DSO (Kent Ridge) Building and the MMI demonstrates the commitment of the Singapore defence R&D community in leveraging on technological advances to deliver unique solutions to sharpen the cutting edge of Singapores national security.

-- Mindef news release.

trueno86 SG

To me..it is just another waste of money/resources from the “lab”