경량화된 소방용 자가공급식 공기호흡기(SCBA)의 생리적·심리적 부담 경감 효과

초록

Efforts have been made to reduce the weight of firefighters’ self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) to alle- viate their physical burden. Recently, a prototype of the SCBA was developed in Korea using carbon composite materials making it 1.6 kg lighter than existing commercial products with the same capacity. However, its physiological and psy- chological improvement effects are unclear. This study aimed to quantitatively evaluate the physiological and subjective strain after reducing the SCBA’s weight by 13% from 12.0 kg to 10.4 kg. The results showed that the physiological strain was not significantly reduced, but the subjective strain was significantly reduced. In particular, the sweating sensation and thermal comfort improved after the onset of perspiration during mid-rest phrase. In addition, while physiological benefits were not observed, the perception of weight reduction and ease of movement experienced by the wearer are valuable find- ings. The findings imply that to alleviate firefighters’ physiological strain during their duties, improvements in SCBA should focus on the weight and shape of the apparatus.

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