Thermal imaging detects and measures the thermal heat emitted by people and objects. It has a wide range of applications, some of which require protective gear and special techniques. A person who takes a thermal image is called a thermographer.
Uses for Thermal Imaging
Medical thermal imaging, also called thermography, locates disease via body surface temperature. Thermal imaging is also used by firefighters to see through smoke and find victims or pinpoint the source of the fire. It is used by engineers to inspect and locate over-heating in equipment and power lines, by rescue teams to locate missing individuals, by the military, law enforcement and security and even by those studying volcanoes and the stars.
Varied Use Requires Specialized Gear
It is difficult to generalize in terms of protective clothing and techniques of thermal imaging, since the wide field of thermal imaging requires an equally wide variety of protective gear and techniques. The night-vision goggles of a military exercise are very different from what is needed to study a volcano.
Imaging techniques need to be highly specialized and focused on a specific need. The fixed, mounted infrared cameras used in security screening are one example. The infrared detector used by a working firefighter must be operated under very different conditions; and the firefighter must wear protective clothing that is appropriate for the dangers of a fire.
Medical Thermal Imaging Equipment
Most medical thermal imaging is now accomplished via digital infrared cameras. The digital camera, used by a lab technician, converts skin surface infrared radiation into digitized electrical impulses which can be seen on a monitor. This creates a visual image called a thermogram, from which a diagnosis can be made. This non-invasive procedure does not require safety equipment, and is safe for both medical thermographer and patient.
Personal Protective Equipment
Industrial thermal imaging, however, is an area that requires protective gear. According to Jim White, Training Director for Shermco Industries and an expert on Arc Flash Hazard Work, a thermographer who uses thermal imaging to inspect and detect industrial over-heating must wear personal protective equipment (PPE) that is "arc-rated," or able to stand up to an arc flash. An arc flash is an electrical explosion, a serious hazard in industrial thermal imaging. OSHA recently published an update of requirements for PPEs in all fields, industry-wide, in October 2009.
Types of Thermal Imaging Cameras
Some of the more common thermal imaging cameras are semiconductor-based sensors that use combinations of elements, such as Indium Antimonide or Indium gallium arsenides to detect heat. This type of camera is often used in high-power, high-frequency electronics.
Another type of current thermal imaging camera uses Mercury Cadmium Telluride to create a semiconductor-based sensor that is used by car drivers to see through dense fog. Quantum Well Infrared Photodetectors, or QWIPs, are sensors used by astronomers to detect the heat signature of far-distant stars.
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