PHOENIX — In an isolated room on Arizona State University's campus stands a "manikin" that sweats, breathes, and most importantly wants to replace you.
ANDI the "manikin" stands in for a person so researchers can better understand the impact of heat and weather on the human body.
According to ASU, there are only 10 "manikin" in existence in the world and the university's is unique in that it is the first that can be used outdoors because it is enabled by a unique internal cooling channel.
ASU researchers have the capability to simulate heat-exposure scenarios from different places around the globe in a newly developed heat chamber at the university.
In the "Warm Room" researchers are able to control the wind and have temperatures up to 140 degrees Fahrenheit along with solar radiation.
“With ANDI we want to be able to study these dire life-threatening situations when people are exposed to extreme heat—that we otherwise couldn’t put a human in,” said ASU professor Jennifer Vanos.
ANDI is the size of an average person. Professor Konrad Rykaczewski said the machine is outfitted with more than $100,000 of equipment so it can go outside. There are 140 sweat pores on its skin. Underneath the surface, there are cooling and heating rods designed to replicate a human.
"It aims to do everything a human body does thermal regulation-wise," Professor Kykaczewski said.
Researchers say they can program ANDI to replicate different conditions within a person and see how they handle the heat.
That can include medical conditions, that will better inform policymakers about who is most at risk during a heat wave.
They hope it will narrow down individual responses.
"Why Bob is okay in a heat wave, and Susie is not okay in a heatwave, and how can we better identify those people who are not going to be okay," Professor Vanos said. "Help us understand how to prioritize in that situation and what to do."
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