At the Institute of Textile Technology and Process Engineering (ITV) in Denkendorf two research projects were supported by the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research involve quite different sensors. The lead project is called “SensProCloth” and is concerned with the issue of system-integrated sensory protective apparel for the fire service and incident response units, while the second, related project is called “iBePol” and is derived from the first as intelligent operational apparel for police and security forces. The overall goal of both projects is to use system-integrated protective apparel to continuously capture and relay information about vital and status parameters, activities, ambient conditions and events in addition to providing emergency services’ communication and data transfer for the fire service and incident response units. Furthermore the sensors should help determine the location of the emergency services in buildings or out in the field and in an emergency enable medical assessment of a condition by the emergency services so that assistance can be provided in time. In addition the communication and monitoring system should help the mobile operational control take decisions.
All the sensors to capture the vital parameters are contained in a t-shirt that is worn against the skin. The vital parameters collected include hear-rate/ECG, breathing rate, body temperature and activity level. Ambient temperature on the outside of the clothing is measured to determine the environmental parameters and optical harmful gas sensors are used. These optical signal devices are also located on the outside of the clothing. The “iBePol” project builds on these developments and is intended for use in apparel systems for both civilian and protective use. It is also intended to integrate sensors for hazardous substances.
