MakerS as innovaTors Chapter 1 What Are E-Textiles C an you imagine making a phone call from your T-shirt Would you like to have a scarf that gets tighter as the wind kicks up These are not quite reality yet but fashion designers artists and scientists are working together to combine textiles and technology The future of your clothing could be electronic E-textile is short for electronic or electro-textile E-textiles are also called conductive clothing electronic clothing and soft circuits Electronics small computers or other digital devices are built into in them Special conductive thread or paints can be sewn or applied to the fabric as well Smart fabrics do not only sense the environment but also react to it One example might be a shirt that warms you when it’s cold outside cleans itself when it’s dirty lights up when it gets dark or protects the wearer from a fall Smart clothes could monitor your workout and give you advice on how to train A shirt with a pocket that charges mobile phones would be 4
E-TExTilEs E-textiles allow makers to build lights and other electronic devices into clothes and other wearable accessories such as this cuff convenient Smart fabrics are part of a larger category called digital wearables The field of building advanced technology into textile fibers is sometimes called fibertronics Smart clothes and e-textiles can act like a second skin to help monitor what goes on under real skin Electronic or digital sensors woven into or painted onto the clothes can track people’s body changes and 5
MakerS as innovaTors surrounding environmental conditions Some research ers are hopeful that they will be able to use the body’s natural energy to power smart clothes Because the sensors are part of the clothing they can be placed in direct contact with a person’s skin and can detect an amazing range of information about the wearer Sharing the information gathered from these clothes has the potential to change the way online communities work Athletes might compare their data with that of their friends or professional athletes Information during sporting events could be shared with viewers as it happens Video games could get more personal What happens when fabric becomes programmable Furniture manufacturers in Sweden are interested in fabrics that can change pattern and color This could help people who can’t make up their minds about which sofa they want Researchers are also experimenting with furniture that can heat up This would help people who live in cold places save energy because they could run their furnaces less in the winter The E-Textile Laboratory at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg Virginia is embedding electronics into rugs The rug lights up as people 6
E-TExTilEs move across it This has the potential to help track people in low-visibility situations It could also help guide traffic during evacuations in large buildings E-textiles and smart fabrics are becoming important for improving health and safety Shirts that relieve back pain and remind patients to take their medications might soon become common Boaters are testing life jackets that have sensors to help rescuers find them Cyclists are wearing shirts with turn signals and lights built in to prevent traffic accidents Firefighters may eventually enter a burning building in uniforms that collect information and map directions for safe return routes Each year almost 50,000 Americans become disabled because of swelling associated with the disease diabetes Socks with conductive threads and pressure sensors could monitor and prevent swelling to avoid this Medical data gathered from these wearables can also be shared online with health care providers This could allow patients to leave hospitals early and still be carefully monitored by their doctors The fashion industry is equally excited about wearable electronics While one-of-a-kind designs 7
