Development and Validation of a Novel Instrumented Thermal Hand Manikin for the Evaluation of Lunar Gloves

Under this project, a novel thermal hand manikin was developed and validated to overcome limitations of existing instruments and provide a repeatable tool for ongoing extravehicular activity (EVA) glove evaluation. Initial development included creating computer aided design (CAD) and physical models of hand forms that met characteristic dimensions and could be fitted into a glove. Subsequent development focused on the manikin thermoregulation system, sensors, and data acquisition. The final design consisted of a four-piece hand manikin with fluid-regulated nylon shell, and 15 miniature surface-mounted temperature/heat flux sensors. The instrument was constructed and validated for thermal stability, accuracy, and correlation with an existing thermal hand instrument. The final system integrates directly with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory Cryogenic Ice Testing, Acquisition Development, and Excavation Laboratory (CITADEL) test chamber for ambient exposure and cold surface contact testing.