Improved Vapor Compression Personal Cooling

The use of protective garments and/or body armor combined with warm ambient environments is a potentially lethal combination. We propose to develop a very small man-portable, self-contained cooling system based on our vapor compression technology. We believe that a vapor compression based system is the only candidate that can meet the size and weight goals of the mission. Aspen Systems is uniquely qualified to develop a miniature personal cooling system for emergency responder applications. We have successfully designed, fabricated, tested, and licensed a small rotary compressor that literally fits in the palm of your hand. Our compressor weighs just over one pound and measures about 2.2¿ in diameter by 2.8¿ long. It is capable of producing 300 Watts (1024 Btu/hr) of cooling in a 120¿F ambient environment. We will continue to push the envelope in miniaturization as we plan to reduce the cooling system size by about 50% in this program resulting in a ¿Fanny-Pack¿ sized vapor compression cooling unit. Aspen¿s miniature personal cooling unit developed in this program will decrease the likelihood of heat stress related injuries or deaths. Potential applications of our product are numerous including uses in the military (helicopter and fixed wing pilots, dismounted soldiers, special forces, flight deck and armored vehicle personnel, and search and rescue), hazardous waste clean-up, explosive ordinance disposal, firefighters, law enforcement, mining, utility workers, metal processing, power plants, chemical/pesticide applicators, race car drivers and pit crews, construction workers, recreational users (golfers, hikers, etc.), farm workers, costume characters, and medical applications like multiple sclerosis patients, post operative treatment, hyperthermia, and treatment of stroke and heart attack victims.