Effect of simulated work in artificial climate chamber on physiological and psychological responses of construction workers with air-conditioned wear

Abstract

To extract the effects of air-conditioned wear (ACW), we carried out experiments to measure the physiological and psychological responses of workers performing simulated construction work in an artificial climate chamber at controlled room temperatures of 29°C and 34°C. The workers wore ACW or not. The effects of wearing ACW on skin temperature, sublingual temperatures, sweat rate and heart rate were significant only at 34°C. We propose that the heart rate varies due to sweat content of clothing reflecting dehydration which varies significantly depending on environmental temperature and whether or not the worker is wearing ACW.