A team of scientists are working to bring an innovative personal air conditioning unit to market.

Note: as the product is still in development, this picture shows a prototype

Designed to be worn about the person, the product has been made for firefighters and other people likely to be working in extreme heat.

It has been developed by Brazilian company, Embraco, which is owned by American refrigerator and washing machine manufacturer, Whirlpool.

According to the Telegraph, the product is around four inches long and can be sewn into the fabric of clothing, such as the uniforms of firefighters or soldiers.

Hot air will be sucked into a thin steel case to be cooled by a microcompressor. It will then propelled out through a network of thin tubes in the clothing - cooling down the wearer.

A spokesman from Embraco told info4fire that the product was still in development and could not say what it would be called or when it would be introduced to market.