SMART TEXTILES

Dr Mahima Nand
Head of Department, Department of Fashion Design
Kalinga University Raipur

Their method of production, which
Researchers have began developing smart materials that securely fit the body using a novel fabrication technique, allowing them to detect the wearer’s movements and position. To dramatically improve the accuracy of pressure sensors woven into multilayered knit textiles, or 3DKnITS, the researchers employed a novel type of plastic yarn and a technique known as thermoforming, which involves using heat to partially melt the yarn. They created a hardware and software system to gather and interpret data from pressure sensors in real time after employing this method to create a “smart” shoe and mat. The machine-learning algorithm predicted around 99 percent of the movements and yoga postures that a person would perform while standing on the smart cloth mat.
This method of manufacture has potential applications in medicine and rehabilitation. For example, it might be used to develop smart socks that detect pressure on a diabetic patient’s foot to prevent ulcers, as well as shoes that track the stride of someone learning to walk after an injury. “With digital knitting, you can design your own patterns and put sensors into the structure to make it smooth and comfortable. You can also tailor it to your body form.”