An innovative collaboration between Advitech’s Principal Engineer – Ideation, Simon Bull, and University student Mikyla Peters, has resulted in the development of a novel in-ear wearable device to detect heat stress in an individual and create an alert.
Mikyla Peters recently graduated from the University of Newcastle with degrees in Electrical & Electronic Engineering (Honours) and Computer Systems Engineering (Honours). During her capstone project, she collaborated with Simon Bull, applying her engineering expertise to address heat stress among workers wearing insulating personal protective equipment (PPE).
The project began in July of last year, coinciding with Mikyla’s internship in India as part of her New Colombo Plan Scholarship. Despite the four-hour time difference, Mikyla was dedicated to the project and attended meetings as early as 5:00 am IST. Mikyla took materials from Australia to India and even borrowed soldering equipment from her internship office so she could work on the project.
The initial project scope was to design a product capable of detecting and alerting heat stress at an individual level. Traditional heat stress monitoring assesses environmental factors like wet and dry temperatures and wind speed. However, this method falls short for individuals wearing insulating PPE, like firefighters, who are protected from external environmental conditions but are unable to dissipate body heat effectively. This inability to release heat can lead to dangerous levels of heat stress, as their bodies cannot thermoregulate properly.
Recognising this challenge, Mikyla hypothesised that individual monitoring could offer a more accurate assessment of heat stress risks. Inspired by existing research, she set out to develop a wearable device that could provide monitoring of an individual’s physiological responses to heat in real time. While the concept of wearable heat stress monitors has been explored before, Mikyla aimed to differentiate her project by designing a novel in-ear wearable device.
Through three hardware revisions, Mikyla and Simon tested and improved the circuit, tackling unique challenges such as fitting sensors within the ear canal for heart rate detection. The final product is a working prototype capable of measuring body temperature and heart rate in-ear. The device is designed to be worn like an earbud.
While specifically intended for heat stress monitoring, the system’s flexibility allows it to be easily extended to provide general health measurements, opening doors to other applications such as vitals monitoring. This project not only fulfilled the final requirements for Mikyla’s degree but also ignited her passion for creating practical solutions to real-world challenges.
As Mikyla transitions from academia to a professional career, she looks forward to leveraging her skills in engineering and technology to continue making a positive impact. Her work exemplifies the experimental and innovative ethos of Emergent Group, showcasing how engineering and technical sciences can address pressing issues and improve the well-being of individuals in high-risk professions.
