|
| |
ProeTEX
Learning about Smart Textiles
|
What is a Smart and Communicating Textile ?
Smart Textiles are an exciting possibility for the future of
clothing and this web site aims to introduce you to the ways
technologies, functions and fashion can be brought together to
create new opportunities in clothing.
Smart
Textiles are textiles enhanced with electronic devices giving
them active functions – integrating sensors, actuators,
processors, and links into complete systems integrated into
clothing.
-
Sensors which measure things: Temperature, Electrical
activity, Humidity, pH, Strain, etc…
l
-
Actuators
- which
do things: Mechanical, Visual, Audio, Temperature, etc…
l
-
Processors
-
which perform logic and control: Communication devices,
Computers, etc…
l
-
Links : Bus, Conducting Wires, Radio communication, etc…
lAll
doing something that is, hopefully, useful.
|
l
|
Smart garments
are forms of clothing which integrate novel functions. As examples they
might:
-
Adapt their
insulation level according to outside temperature changes
-
Through
integrated sensors and actuators, detect vital signals of the
wearer’s body (such as heart rate and breathing rate) and react to
them
-
Change
colour or emit light upon defined stimuli, such as temperature
changes
-
Through
integrated sensors and actuators detect and signal significant
changes in the wearer’s environment (absence of oxygen, presence
of toxic gases or chemicals, radiation, strong electromagnetic
fields etc.)
-
Generate or
accumulate electric energy to power their sensor, communication and
other devices.
|
Smart or Functional Clothing
Functional clothing
Smart clothing
Interactive clothing
Intelligent clothing
These are the innovative response to limitations
with present garments.
While all types of clothing have some basic decorative
or protective effects, functional clothing refers
to products in which one or several specific
functionalities are emphasized like strong insulation,
water or fire resistance, breathability, wear resistance
etc.
Smart or intelligent clothing takes (multi)functionality
one step further as it refers to products that can offer
their functions in a more adaptive way in response to
stimuli from the environment or the wearer.
|
Functional Clothing
Clothing is a form of
'microclimate system surrounding humans'.
Different types of clothing needs to perform
different functions for its wearers such as:
-
•
Keep us warm or cool
-
•
Keep us dry from outside rain or
inside perspiration
-
•
Protect us from injury such as falls
or abrasion
-
•
Entertain us or those around us
through their appearance
- Preserve our
modesty
•
We
are gradually improving these capacities and
providing new ones.
|
|
Smart Clothing
Smart clothing performs
complex active functions to assist the wearer
such as:
-
Adapt its insulation function according to
temperature changes
-
Through integrated sensors and actuators, detect
vital signals of the wearer’s body and react to
them
-
Change colour or emit light upon defined stimuli
-
Through integrated sensors and actuators detect and
signal significant changes in the wearer’s
environment (absence of oxygen, presence of
toxic gases or chemicals, radiation, strong
electromagnetic fields etc.)
-
Generate or accumulate electric energy to power
medical and other electronic devices.
|
|
Systems are developing rapidly |
|
|
|
|
|
| Is this your idea of smart clothing? |
|
This jacket contains iPOD control functions and a GPS
system |
|
Evolution of Smart Textiles
Smart Textiles and Clothing is proceeding
through a series of evolutionary stages on a path which will
finally result in complete, seamless, invisible, integration
with the fabric of the clothing itself. These gradual steps
can be summarised as:
lStep
1: Side by Side Systems
lHere
the electronics are attached to the textile through
external elements (pockets, pouches) and remains
rigid and enclosed. Cables and soft switches are
sewn into the clothing as could be rigid electronics
such as LED lights which are either removable for
washing or encapsulated.
Step 2: Hybrid Systems
Electronics are permanently attached to the textile through
a closer
coupling, such as attached through embroidered
patches or woven connections and becomes flexible and washable
Step 3:
Complete Integration
Electronic functions are completely
integrated with the clothing, textiles and even in
the fibres themselves, including providing active functions such as
sensors, actuators, processors. There are no
electronics and textiles, only electronic textiles.
|
|
|
|
