TEMPERATURE CONTROL APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR THERMOREGULATION OF A HUMAN BODY

Abstract

The present invention relates to a temperature control apparatus for thermoregulation of a human body, comprising at least one radiation absorption panel with at least one surface capable of absorbing thermal radiation, and a cooling device provided to cool said panel. A sleeping accommodation for a human being comprises a lying area and such a temperature control apparatus, wherein the radiation absorption panel is disposed adjacent to the lying are or above the lying area. The invention further relates to a corresponding method for thermoregulation of the human body.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of a temperature control apparatus for thermoregulation of human body, as well as to a corresponding method.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

For the well-being of humans, the body temperature is an important factor. Obviously the human body temperature is affected by a number of parameters that can be roughly divided into internal body parameters, depending on the body activity of the respective human being, and external parameters depending on the environmental conditions.

More specifically, the temperature condition of a human body can be described by skin and core body temperatures, which are both controlled by human physiology. The skin temperature is a result of delicate balance of body parameters like the metabolic rate production, behavioural and physiological vasodynamics, the sweating rate and so on, but also of environmental parameters like the air flow in skin proximity, air humidity, air temperature and radiation heat exchange with the environment. According to general experience, the perception of well-being of a human being can be affected by changing such environmental conditions to regulate the skin temperature. A well-known example is common air conditioning of a room in which humans are situated. By changing the air temperature and air humidity in the room, a comfortable climate can be provided.

One important field of thermoregulation of a human body is to provide comfortable sleeping conditions in a sleeping accommodation, for example, at a bed disposed in a bed room. Because the heat production of the human body varies cyclically through the night from estimated 200 W in the evening to less than 100 W in the midnight, raising again in the morning hours, people usually cover themselves with blankets to compensate the smaller heat production. However, to regulate the skin temperature, the room temperature has to be set to an appropriate level for providing optimal sleep conditions. According to the state of the art, this is achieved by controlling the air temperature of the room by heating/cooling devices. For example, document JP03072173 discloses the use of a radiation heating plate for conditioning the air in a zone above the lying area of a bed.

The drawback of such known methods is that the skin temperature of the respective human being can only be controlled indirectly by changing the air temperature of the whole room. That is, it is impossible to change the microclimate at the sleeping accommodation without changing room condition. Generally speaking, it is desired to adjust the skin temperature of a human in a more direct way than it is possible with traditional methods.

This problem also arises in other situations that are not related to a sleeping condition, for example, in a passenger compartment, a working place or at any other site where humans are located. There can be several reasons for dispensing the use of a traditional air conditioning, for example, to avoid an air flow or to adjust a micro-climate in situ at a place where one person is located, that can be different from other places. Just to give one example, the driving seat of a vehicle could be temperated different from the passenger seats. According to the state of the art, complex air conditioning arrangements have been developed to provide this feature.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the invention to provide a temperature control apparatus for thermoregulation of a human body that provides a relatively simple way of adjusting the skin temperature of a human being directly, avoiding the drawbacks of common air conditioning.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a temperature control apparatus enabling a direct and easy control of the skin temperature of a human being in sleeping state, being located at a sleeping accommodation.

Still one further object of the invention is to provide a corresponding method for thermoregulation of a human body to adjust the skin temperature of a human being without the drawbacks and limitations of common air-conditioning.

This object is achieved by a temperature control apparatus for thermoregulation of a human body, comprising at least one radiation absorption panel capable of absorbing thermoradiation and a cooling device providing to cool said panel.

This temperature control apparatus is based on the functional principle of radiation absorption. Heat that is radiated from the skin of the human being is absorbed by a panel with good absorption properties, especially in the range of infrared radiation. For this purpose the panel can be arranged in a close distance to the user's skin, to cover at least a part of the human body so that the radiated heat from the user's skin is absorbed by a surface of the panel. Thus, a heat extraction is a achieved to adjust the skin temperature to a comfortable level. This is a contactless temperature control, without the need of an airflow or the like to provide a heat exchange with the skin. Moreover, such a temperature control apparatus works selectively and well-directed without influencing the environmental surrounding of the site where the temperature control apparatus is located.

For example, such an apparatus could be located at a sleeping accommodation like a bed where a human being is located. The skin temperature of the human could be adjusted as described above, while the bed room air temperature would not be perceivably affected by the operation of the apparatus according to the present invention. Furthermore, the panel has the additional function of blocking thermal radiation from the environment that could contribute to a rise of the skin temperature. The absorbed heat is discharged by a cooling device that is provided to cool the panel. Any suitable device can be used in the context of the present invention. The skilled man would choose the operational principle of the cooling device according to aspects of power consumption, efficiency, noise development or the like.

The temperature control apparatus according to the present invention is especially suited for the purpose of adjusting the skin temperature of a sleeping human being easily and effectively. However, the present invention is not limited to this application. Other applications could include the thermoregulation of a working place, a seat in a vehicle or the like.

According a preferred of the present invention, the radiation absorption panel is formed at least partially of a material capable of absorbing thermal radiation.

For example, the panel could consist completely of a material with a high absorbency in the infrared range, so that thermal radiation is effectively absorbed. It can be further presumed that only a part of this panel is formed of such a material with high absorbing capacity. This could be a layer on the surface that is directed to the human body which is to be thermoregulated.

According to another preferred embodiment, said panel comprises an insulating layer covering at least one surface of the panel capable of absorbing thermal radiation and having a low thermal conductance as well as a high transparency for thermal radiation.

Such an insulating layer separates the cool surface absorbing thermal radiation from humid environmental air, avoiding the condensation of water contained in the air on the surface of the panel. This greatly enhances the cooling efficiency.

Preferably the insulating layer is provided as a sandwich layer comprising at least two layers formed of a material having a high transparency for thermal radiation, said layers being separated by an air layer or a layer mainly comprising air.

According to another preferred embodiment, said cooling device is a thermoelectric cooling device, a water cooling device or a refrigerating cooling device. In thermoelectric cooling, a heat flux is created between the junction of different types of materials arranged in different layers due to the Peltier effect. However, other types of cooling a perfectly suited for the application according to the present invention. Water cooling may use a water cycle in which water flows to the panel to be heated by the absorbed heat, and the cooling water is cooled down again by a respective cooling unit. In a refrigerating cycle, a refrigerant is expended and compressed to cool down the radiation absorption panel.

Preferably said panel is provided as a curved plate.

According to another preferred embodiment, the panel is provided as a ceiling panel or wall panel of a room or compartment.

In this case the panel can be installed as part of the lining of a room or a passenger compartment, for example, in a vehicle.

The present invention further relates to a sleeping accommodation for a human being, comprising a lying area and a temperature control apparatus according to the present invention, wherein the radiation absorption panel is disposed adjacent to the lying area or above the lying area.

In this arrangement, a sleeping human being located on the lying area of the sleeping accommodation can be thermoregulated specifically by the temperature control apparatus, while the sleeping accommodation itself is located in a room with conditions that are regulated by common air-conditioning or heating. That is, the skin temperature of the sleeping human being can be thermoregulated selectively by the temperature control apparatus according to the present invention while the remaining area of the room is not affected by this regulation.

According to a preferred embodiment of this sleeping accommodation, the lying area is formed by the top surface of a bed.

According to another preferred embodiment, the panel is curved to enclose the lying area at least partially.

The present invention is further related to a method for thermoregulation of a human body, comprising arranging a radiation absorption panel in a vicinity of the human body to absorb thermal radiation emitted by the human body, and cooling said panel.

In a preferred embodiment of this method, the human body is covered at least partially by said panel.

According to another preferred embodiment of the method according to the present invention, the cooling is performed as thermoelectric cooling, water cooling or refrigerating cooling.

Preferably this method comprises providing the radiation absorption panel with an insulating layer having a low thermal conductance and a high transparency for thermal radiation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic top view of a bed that represents a sleeping accommodation comprising a temperature control apparatus as one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of another embodiment of a temperature control apparatus for thermoregulation of a human body according to the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a scematic cross section through a radiation absorption panel as part of a temperature control apparatus according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a sleeping accommodation 10 for a human being 12. This sleeping accommodation 10 comprises a bed 14 with a mattress 16, the top surface of the mattress 16 representing a rectangular lying area for the human being 12. The head of the human being 12 is lying on a pillow 18, while the rest of her or his body is covered by a blanket 20.

The sleeping accommodation 10 in FIG. 1 further comprises a temperature control apparatus 22 for thermoregulation of the body of the human being 12 that is sleeping in the bed 14. This temperature control apparatus 22 generally comprises a radiation absorption panel 24 and a cooling device 26 for cooling the panel 24. FIG. 1 schematically indicates a connection 28 between the panel 24 and the cooling device 26 to clarify that the cooling device 26 should be connected to the panel 24 in any way to provide the cooling. However, the kind of connection 28 depends on the construction and the operation principle of the cooling device 26, which will be described later.

The panel 24 is provided to absorb thermal radiation that is emitted by the body of the human being 12. For this purpose at least one side 30 of the panel 24 that is facing the human being 12 is capable of absorbing thermal radiation, that is, radiation in the domain of the infrared optical range. For example, it is possible to form the panel 24 of a plate capable of absorbing thermal radiation and to cover one surface of this absorption plate by an insulating layer having a low thermal conductance and a high transparency for thermal radiation. Details of such a construction will be discussed in detail in view of FIG. 3.

Due to the absorption of thermal radiation, the panel 24 is slightly heated. The absorbed heat is discharged by the cooling device 26 via the connection 28 to keep the panel 24 on a low temperature. With other words, the panel 24 is permanently cooled by the cooling device 26. The panel 24 can be cooled down to a temperature lower than the environmental temperature in the room where the sleeping accommodation 10 is located. For example, the panel 24 is cooled down to a temperature of t_panel of +10° C., while the room temperature t_room is +20° C. Experiments have shown that this results to a perceived operational temperature of t_perception of +14° C. that is perceived by the human being 12. This means that by use of the temperature control apparatus 22 shown in this embodiment, the human body 12 can be thermoregulated to a low skin temperature by extracting the heat that is radiated from her or his body, without any air-conditioning in the room. Another operational function of the plate 24 is to block thermal radiation from the environment from reaching the body of the human being 12. This blocking function is also achieved by the absorption properties of the material of the panel 24.

In another example, with a higher room temperature of t_room of +30° C. and a panel temperature of t_panel of +10° C., an even larger effect, namely a temperature drop of 11° C. down to a perceived operational temperature t_perception of 19° C. is achieved by the thermoregulation effect of the temperature control apparatus 22 as described above. The panel 24 is curved to enclose the upper part of the body of the human being 12 partially. In FIG. 1 it is shown that the plate 24 is curved like one quarter of an elliptical body, reaching from a side area (right side of the user, which is the upper part of FIG. 1) around the pillow to a head portion of the human being 12 (right side in FIG. 1). By this curvature, the upper right body side of the human being 12 is thermoregulated by absorbing the thermal radiation originating from his body. It can, of course, be assumed that the radiation absorption panel 24 can take any other suitable form or having another cross section than shown in this embodiment. The panel 24 can also cover the human being 12 not only from the side, i.e. being disposed adjacent to the lying area, but being curved to extend also partially over the lying area to enclose the human body partially like the section of a cocoon.

The cooling device 26 can operate according to any suitable cooling principle. For example, the cooling device 26 can be a water cooling device, comprising a circular flow of water (or any other suitable cooling medium) between the cooling device 26 and the panel 24. Cool water is supplied to the panel 24, where it is heated due to the raised temperature of the panel 24. The heated cooling water flows back to the cooling device 26, where it is cooled down again. In this embodiment the connection 28 between the panel 24 and the cooling device comprises the cooling circuit for circulating the cooling water. According to another embodiment, the cooling device 26 is provided as a thermoelectric cooling device comprises a Peltier element. In a third embodiment, the cooling device 26 comprises a refrigerating cooling cycle comprising a refrigerant circulating between the cooling device 26 and the panel 24. Such a refrigerating cycle comprises a compressor, an evaporator and an expansion valve. When the compressed refrigerant enters the panel 24, it can be expanded to absorb heat from the panel 24 to be converted into a gas state and be transported back to the cooling device 26, where it is compressed again. Such a refrigeration cycle is well-known from the state of the art and can well be applied to a temperature control apparatus 22 according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the temperature control apparatus according to the present invention. In this application, the temperature control apparatus generally denoted by reference number 32 serves to cool an office working place 34 comprising a desk 36 and a seat where a human being 12 is sitting. This working place 34 is located in a determined area to be thermoregulated by the temperature control apparatus 32.

The general construction of the temperature control apparatus 32 in FIG. 2 is the same as for the temperature control apparatus 22 in FIG. 1. This temperature control apparatus 32 comprises two radiation absorption panels 38,40 that are capable of absorbing thermal radiation radiated from the body of the human being 12. Both panels 38,40 are cooled by a cooling device 26 down to a temperature below the temperature of the room where the working place 34 is situated.

The first panel 38 is located directly above the head of the human being 12 and is provided as a ceiling panel that is integrated directly into the ceiling of the room. Therefore the installation of this panel 38 does not deteriorate the outer appearance of the room ceiling. The second panel 40 is provided as wall panel that it is integrated directly in to a wall adjacent to working place 34. Both panels 38,40 are provided with a surface capable of absorbing thermal radiation originating from the human being 12, like in the embodiment in FIG. 1. By the absorption of thermal radiation, the skin temperature of the body of the human being 12 is lowered so that the human being 12 feels more comfortable. To discharge the heat from the two panels 38,40, the same cooling device 26 as in FIG. 1 can be provided that it connected by different connections 42,44 to the respective panels 38,40. In FIG. 2, these connections 42,44 are only indicated schematically. However, the kind of connection may depend on the operation principle of the cooling device 26. As in the first embodiment, the cooling device 26 can be thermoelectric cooling device, a water cooling device or a refrigeration cooling device.

Like the bed 14 in FIG. 1, the working place 34 in FIG. 2 only represents one example of the zone in which a human being 12 is located that is to be thermoregulated independent from the surrounding. For example, the ceiling panel 38 can be integrated in a ceiling of a passenger compartment of a vehicle above a seat to manipulate the microclimate below the panel 38. Any other applications are conceivable.

With reference to FIG. 3, a cross section of a radiation absorption panel 24 will be discussed, like it is used in the temperature control apparatus 22 according to FIG. 1. As already stated above, a panel of this construction can also be used in the temperature control apparatus 32 according to FIG. 2.

The radiation absorption panel 24 comprises a plate 50 formed of a material capable of absorbing thermal radiation. On a side 30 determined to face a human being (not shown) for absorbing thermal radiation originating from her or his body, which is the right side in FIG. 3, the surface of this plate 50 is covered by an insulating layer 52. In general, this insulating layer 52 has a low thermal conductance but a high transparency for thermal radiation. These properties are achieved by providing the insulating layer 52 as a sandwich layer, comprising two layers 54 and 56 each formed of a material having a high transparency for thermal radiation and being separated by an air layer 58. This air layer 58 is formed by a plurality of cellular pockets 60 filled with air and being arranged side by side between the two layers 54 and 56. Because air has good heat insulating properties, the air layer 58 provides a good thermal insulation of the plate 50 with respect to the environmental air on the side 30 that is covered by insulating layer 52. By this construction a direct contact between the environmental air and the plate 50, that is cooled down by the cooling device (not shown), can be avoided. Consequently, the condensation of water contained in the air on the surface of the plate 50 is prevented, enhancing the cooling efficiency of the panel 24. It can also conceived to form the intermediate layer 58 of any material containing air, like a foam material, for example. In this case the material forming the layer 58 should also have a high transparency for thermal radiation.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive; the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word “comprising” does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article “a” or “an” does not exclude a plurality. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.

Claims

1. The temperature control apparatus for thermoregulation of a human body,

comprising at least one radiation absorption panel capable of absorbing thermal radiation and

a cooling device provided to cool said panel,

wherein said panel comprises an insulating layer covering at least one surface of said panel capable of absorbing thermal radiation,

said insulating layer having a low thermal conductance and a high transparency for thermal radiation,

said insulating layer is provided as a sandwich layer comprising at least two layers formed of a material having a high transparency for thermal radiation,

said at least two layers being separated by an air layer or a layer mainly comprising air.

2. The temperature control apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein said panel is formed at least partially of a material capable of absorbing thermal radiation.

3. (canceled)

4. (canceled)

5. The temperature control apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein said cooling device is a thermoelectric cooling device, a water cooling device or a refrigerating cooling device.

6. The temperature control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said panel is provided as a curved plate.

7. The temperature control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said panel is provided as a ceiling panel or wall panel of a room or a compartment.

8. A sleeping accommodation for a human being,

comprising a lying area and a temperature control apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the radiation absorption panel is disposed adjacent to the lying area or above the lying area.

9. The sleeping accommodation according to claim 8,

wherein said lying area is formed by the top surface of a bed.

10. The sleeping accommodation according to claim 8,

wherein the panel is curved to enclose the lying area at least partially.

11. A method for thermoregulation of a human body, comprising:

arranging a radiation absorption panel capable of absorbing thermal radiation in the vicinity of the human body to absorb thermal radiation emitted by the human body,

wherein said panel comprises an insulating layer covering at least one surface of said panel capable of absorbing thermal radiation,

said insulating layer having a low thermal conductance and a high transparency for thermal radiation,

said insulating layer is provided as a sandwich layer comprising at least two layers formed of a material having a high transparency for thermal radiation,

said at least two layers being separated by an air layer or a layer mainly comprising air,

and cooling said panel.

12. The method according to claim 11,

wherein the human body is covered at least partially by said panel.

13. The method according to claim 11,

wherein said cooling is performed as thermoelectric cooling, water cooling or refrigerating cooling.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein said method comprises providing said radiation absorption panel with an insulating layer having a low thermal conductance and a high transparency for thermal radiation.