Electrical Analog Simulation of Temperature Regulation in Man

Using the basic equations for heat balance which have been developed to take into account heat losses by radiation, convection and evaporation, an electrical analog has been constructed to simulate the physiological responses to heat and cold in the nude man. As has been previously shown, physiologic temperature regulation involves three of the basic types of control modes, namely, proportional control, rate control, and some of the characteristics of on-off control. The rate and proportionality constants have been determined experimentally on the assumption that the regulated temperature is the average body temperature. Time constants for the various thermal changes can be determined from the thermal constants of tissue and the response times of the physiological variables of sweating, vasomotor activity and change in metabolic rate. The simulator predicts steady-state situations of rectal temperature, skin temperature, metabolic rate, vasomotor state and evaporative heat loss under both resting conditions and exercise. Dynamic responses to sudden shifts in environmental temperature, air velocity, relative humidity and metabolic rate can be simulated to a considerable extent using equations based on the controls outlined above.