National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 1617 Cole Boulevard, Golden, CO 80401-3393

A -- THERMAL MANIKIN DEVELOPMENT SOURCES SOUGHT SOL SS DW-220 DUE 050200 POC Kathee Flanagan Roque, Contracts & Business Services; Kathee_Roque@nrel.gov WEB: Center for Transportation Technologies and Systems;, http://www.ctts.nrel.gov. E-MAIL: Contract Administrator via e-mail, Kathee_Roque@nrel.gov. Current vehicle climate control systems are dramatically overpowered because they are designed to heat/cool the vehicle cabin air mass from an extreme initial temperature to a standard temperature within a certain period of time. Typical vehicle air conditioning systems require 4,000 Watts of power, whereas the human body only dissipatees roughly 100 Watts. A more energy-efficient objective would be to simply achieve thermal comfort of the passengers. The objective of the Thermal Comfort project at the National Rewnewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is to develop computational and experimental models of human thermophysiology, and psychological perception of thermal comfort. Industry can then use these tools to develop more effective and spatially focused climate control systems that directly achieve optimal occupant thermal comfort, but at a minimum power consumption. The objective of the work in this announcement is to build an advanced thermal manikin that will respond to a transient non-uniform thermal environment in the same manner as a human. The manikin will generate the same thermoregulatory responses as a human, both temporally and spatially, and create the same mental perception of thermal comfort. The manikin skin will sweat to simulate evaporative cooling, and will be heated to model body heat generated by blood flows, shivering, and metabolism. It is NREL's expectation that this manikin may develop into the "testing standard" for the industry. The basic concept of the manikin is that it will be covered with hundreds of temperature sensors to detect the external thermal environment. The information from the temperature sensors will be sent to a Human Thermal Mode. This Model is under development at NREL and will predict the local and transient physiological and psychological response of the body to the transient non-uniform thermal field. The local thermoregulatory response information of the body will then be sent back to the manikin. The manikin will generate local heating and sweating at the surface. The surface temperatures of the manikin will then be sent to the model again. The manikin/model loop will continuously cycle at approximately 1 Hz to provide a transient tool. The key design requirements of the thermal manikin are as follows: 1) The manikin must provide independent spatial and temporal control of body heat and sweating for approximately 150 body segments on a few-second time scale. 2) The manikin will be covered with approximately 500 temperature sensors and must possess a thermal response time of a few seconds. 3) The manikin must be completely self-contained without any external connections for at least two hours of operation. a) The manikin will utilize wireless technology to communicate with an external high-speed computer running the Human Thermal Model. b) High energy density batteries will be used for power, and an internal water reservoir for sweating. c) All hardware components must fit inside the manikin. 4) The manikin must have a human-like geometry and weight with prosthetic joints for a full range of motion. 5) The manikin must possess a breathing system that generates an inflow/outflow of warm humid air. 6) The manikin must be rugged and durable and require minimal service. NREL is developing a source list and will issue a formal Request for Proposal to those qualified firms (or teams) who are selected from the technical qualifications and business profiles submitted in response to this announcement. Organizations with previous experience in the development of thermal manikins, bioengineering systems, or other aspects of the advanced thermal manikin are preferred. Qualification summaries are to be submitted not later than May 2, 2000; the RFP is expected to issue by May 15, 2000. Submit qualification summaries/business profiles in one original and two hard copies only to: Kathee Flanagan Roque/National Renewable Energy Laboratory/1617 Cole Boulevard, MS 1632/Golden, CO 80401-3393. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted; please direct questions via e-mail to: Kathee_Roque@nrel.gov. Posted 03/28/00 (W-SN438732). (0088)

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