Heat perception measurements of the different parts found in a car passenger compartment
Résumé
This work describes an instrument able to reproduce the human thermal rendering of interior parts in cars. Synthetic materials are used to replace the human skin. The design starts with a thermal sizing of different layers of these materials to reproduce the behaviour of a real finger. The construction of the device is based on latex deposit process able to ensure an accurate thickness and provide a good mechanical resistance. Measurements have been carried out on different kinds of materials used in automotive industry. Good correlations have been found between these experimental results and a sensory human evaluation. Thermal sensory perceptions related to the sense of touch can now be measured using a physical instrument. This work has been protected by a patent in order to permit an industrial development .