THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS PROGRAM IS TO ASSESS THE FEASIBILITY OF DEVELOPING AN INDIVIDUAL BLAST OVERPRESSURE DOSIMETER THAT WILL MEASURE A 10 TO 150 PSI BLAST WAVE.

THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS PROGRAM IS TO ASSESS THE FEASIBILITY OF DEVELOPING AN INDIVIDUAL BLAST OVERPRESSURE DOSIMETER THAT WILL MEASURE A 10 TO 150 PSI BLAST WAVE. FROM A MEDICAL STANDPOINT, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF REASONS WHY THE DEVELOPMENT OF A PERSONAL BLAST DOSIMETER IS SIGNIFICANT: APPROPRIATE MEDICAL TREATMENT MAY BE OVERPRESSURE AND IMPULSE SENSITIVE; INJURIES PRODUCED BY BLAST ARE DIFFICULT TO DIAGNOSE, AND MANY OF THE SYMPTOMS DO NOT MANIFEST THEMSELVES UNTIL SOME HOURS AFTER THE EVENT; AND IN THE EVENT OF MANY INDIVIDUALS BEING SUBJECTED TO A BLAST INCIDENT IT WOULD BE EXTREMELY VALUABLE TO HAVE A METHODOLOGY THAT WOULD ENABLE TRIAGE TO BE PERFORMED EFFECTIVELY AND EFFICIENTLY. UNDER THIS PROGRAM A NUMBER OF CONCEPTUAL APPROACHES FOR A BLAST DOSIMETER WILL BE EVALUATED, ANALYTICALLY AND EXPERIMENTALLY TO DETERMINE THE MOST PROMISING APPROACH TO BE DEVELOPED DURING PHASE 2 OF THE PROGRAM. A TENTATIVE LIST OF REQUIREMENTS FOR THIS DOSIMETER INCLUDE LOW COST, LONG SHELF AND USE LIFE, SMALL SIZE, WIDE TEMPERATURE OPERATING RANGE, NON-DIRECTIONAL, VISIBLE READOUT, NOT GIVE FALSE READINGS, ABILITY TO MAKE MEASUREMENTS THROUGHOUT THE RANGE OF INTEREST, HANDLE MULTI-EVENTS, AND IF POSSIBLE GIVE A MEASURE OF BLAST DURATION.