Christopher Hanks and Professor Dave Morgan, Industrial Design
Many people died when temperatures rose to 115°F in Southeastern Europe in July of 2000(Blumberg). The Sahara Desert exceeds 120°F, creating a nearly inhospitable environment. The temperature off of the Phoenix Airport runway was reported at 150°F the summer of 2009. This very same environment is the workplace of ramp agents who lift and load heavy luggage into passenger in, and day out. Through researching methods of heat transfer, and interviewing workers, I have conceptualized a number of cooling solutions which will protect workers from the heat.
Conduction, convection, radiation, and metabolism all transfer heat to workers on an airport runway. Conduction through the heat of the ground, convection through the heat of the air, radiation through the suns rays both direct and reflected, and metabolism through the energy producing processes of the body. If the proper body temperature is not maintained, heat cramps, heat rash, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke may result. Hydration, sweat, and light, breathable clothing are all known strategies for regulating body temperature in hot weather or physically strenuous work.
After researching this background information I proceeded to interview people who have worked in places comparable to the Phoenix Airport ramp. My most valuable interview was with a ramp agent who works at the Phoenix Airport. I learned about his work day, the schedule, tasks, procedures, and demands. Then I asked questions about how he, and his co-workers cope with the heat. I found some interesting similarities between his replies and replies from others I received. He said, “I use the sombrero to shield the suns rays, even while using sunscreen. On extremely hot days, 105+ degrees, I usually run cold tap water onto the cap… This will generally only last about 5-10 minutes until the hot, dry air dries it out. By then the flight is generally close to being finished…” This lead me to begin working on hat concepts because I found that while there exists caps that can soak up water, there aren’t caps specifically designed to wet the head, like this worker was using his hat to do. Others I interviewed also mentioned that their favorite way to combat the heat was to get wet.
It was at this point that I began sketching concepts, thinking about how the hat would store and dispense the water, and how the user would fill and use the hat. Please see figure 1. As the concept progressed, my mentor reviewed and helped me to narrow down the options. About half way through the project it became very difficult to do this, but I narrowed it down to the final “Soaker Hat” solution by a process of elimination. I sewed together two hat prototypes, with no previous experience sewing, and gave the to the ramp agent for feedback. He suggested the wide brimmed hat because he always has to put sunscreen on the side of his face. The final hat is illustrated to be much like a sportsman hat, but with a molded rubber inner that holds and dispenses the water. By pressing on a pump over the forehead, water is sprayed out of the inner rim of the hat. A fill cap would nest into the cap, unlike the prototype cap which protrudes. Please see figure 2 for the final hat.
This project was displayed in the BYU Crabtree Innovation Lab for the Senior Industrial Design
Project Presentation, in April of 2010. It is also now a part of my portfolio.
