Source: Purdue

A Purdue Polytechnic New Albany graduate has created a line of battery-powered heated jackets to protect military personnel, law enforcement and others working outside during the harsh winter months.

The line of coats comes from Hearth LLC, which is a company created by David Gramlin. The Hearth Jacket, which pairs with the already existing Hearth Gloves and Hearth Heated Pad, can heat itself up to 140° F and can last as long as eight hours powered by a mobile USB battery bank and thermoelectric technology.

Designed to guard the arms and torso against dangerous temperatures, the Hearth Jacket also includes the additional feature of heated pockets so that workers’ hands can be heated without taxing the body to distribute heat to the hands. Instead, that energy can be used to warm other extremities, according to Gramlin.

Gramlin was inspired to design the jacket based on experiencing temperatures as low as 30° below in North Dakota while working on Air Force B-52s.

“The temperature isn’t a choice, and when you work these jobs, like I did in the military, you have to make sure the job gets done and the aircraft are flying,” Gramlin said. “That’s where our idea came from to help these personnel work more efficiently and more comfortably in the temperatures they can’t control.”

Currently in search of funding or to partner with an apparel manufacturer, Hearth LLC is working to make the jackets available to people working outside, but adds that the coats can work for recreational purposes as well, for instance to keep people warm as they watch a football game.