Don't flip your lid: The Internet of Helmets has arrived Microsoft has shown off an internet helmet built by a customer. The hard-wired headwear is the brainchild of construction outfit Laing O’Rourke, which is rightly concerned with the welfare of workers it sends out to build stuff in the sweltering heat of places like Australia and the Middle East. Folks toiling in the hot sun …
Yes, this needs some 'streamlining'. It also looks (hard to tell from just one photo) like the weight of the components isn't distributed evenly - if this makes the hat somewhat lopsided it would be uncomfortable to wear it all day. But I guess that's due to using off-the-shelf components for a first run.
All in all very impressive - a working solution for a real problem without re-inventing the wheel. But then that's what civil engineering is all about...
All in all very impressive - a working solution for a real problem without re-inventing the wheel.
I can't help thinking that a better approach would have been to re-invent the helmet with the same protection, but far better passive ventilation for use in hot locations. Look at most hard hats, and its quite obvious they were designed for temperate climates. In the photo, the token ventilation on the crown of the helmet might be OK for a warmish day in Europe, I wouldn't want to wear that in Dubai if there were a better designed alternative.
I've worn a few different varieties of hats, including hard hats, and almost none of the common ones do any good in the sub-tropics.
The only one that's been any good in heat has been the Vietnamese coolie hat, and only if there's only light wind. It does get some odd looks though, people either love it or hate it. That said, it beats having the sun in your eyes and coming home looking like a bad impersonation of Rudolph. I've gotten that used to it now that I feel undressed if my head is bare.
As for hard hats… I'm kinda surprised they didn't go the full-brim variety: they could have mounted the unit more centrally just behind the head, either above or below the brim. The only reason I can think of is that the full-brim hard hats are scarce in Australia, the "cap" style ones (like the one pictured) dominate. Look on any building site, and the "cap"-style hard hats out-number the full-brim hats by about 30:1. Odd, as they lend themselves very well to the sunny climate we have here.
I work in the hottest of environments, North Queensland and the NT, and often out in the sun 40-55c
This is another case of some bas@#$d sitting in an air conditined office cost cutting,
letting the company get you off site so you don't cost them money.
A better solution would be to redesign the helmet with better air flow , may be a fan.
Lighter and cooler is better and keep people working
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