Research has proven the
importance of cooling garments in reducing heat stress, especially for workers in
extreme environments. The currently available cooling capacity of these garments
should be controlled for improving their efficiency and autonomy. In this study,
we investigated the Hexoskin wearable biometric shirt’s capacity
to monitor heart rate. Twelve male volunteers wore a Hexoskin biometric shirt and
Polar® H7 heart rate sensor and they completed two
identical tests under two different climate conditions (25°C ± 0.5°C;
39% ± 1% relative humidity and 31°C ± 0.5°C; 60% ± 1% relative humidity).
The results from four different statistical methods show a high correlation and
an absence of significant differences between the Polar? and Hexoskin systems in
monitoring the subjects’ heart rates. The Hexoskin wearable biometric shirt can
be used to monitor the heart rate of humans in moderate or hot and humid climates
under variable physical activities, regardless of their age, weight or height.
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