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2017 | Book

Introduction to Smart Textiles Read chapter Read first chapter

Smart Textiles

Fundamentals, Design, and Interaction

Editors: Stefan Schneegass, Oliver Amft

Publisher: Springer International Publishing

Book Series : Human–Computer Interaction Series

Part of: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Technik" , Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

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About this book

From a holistic perspective, this handbook explores the design, development and production of smart textiles and textile electronics, breaking with the traditional silo-structure of smart textile research and development.

Leading experts from different domains including textile production, electrical engineering, interaction design and human-computer interaction (HCI) address production processes in their entirety by exploring important concepts and topics like textile manufacturing, sensor and actuator development for textiles, the integration of electronics into textiles and the interaction with textiles. In addition, different application scenarios, where smart textiles play a key role, are presented too.

Smart Textiles would be an ideal resource for researchers, designers and academics who are interested in understanding the overall process in creating viable smart textiles.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter
Chapter 1. Introduction to Smart Textiles
Abstract
This chapter introduces fundamental concepts related to wearable computing, smart textiles, and context awareness. The history of wearable computing is summarized to illustrate the current state of smart textile and garment research. Subsequently, the process to build smart textiles from fabric production, sensor and actuator integration, contacting and integration, as well as communication, is summarized with notes and links to relevant chapters of this book. The options and specific needs for evaluating smart textiles are described. The chapter concludes by highlighting current and future research and development challenges for smart textiles.
Stefan Schneegass, Oliver Amft
Chapter 2. Precision Fabric Production in Industry
Abstract
This chapter describes different types of textile structures suited for smart textiles and gives a short overview of production methods for weaved, knitted, and nonwoven fabrics.
Karl Gönner, Hansjürgen Horter, Peter Chabrecek, Werner Gaschler
Chapter 3. Textile Pressure Force Mapping
Abstract
While much effort in smart textile technology development has been put on acquiring biomedical signals such as ECG/EMG or tissue bioimpedance, an important alternative is mapping the pressure which is applied to the textile substrate itself. The modality has inspired researchers to instrument a wide variety of daily items and wearable garments for interactive controlling and activity monitoring in the recent years. To offer a guideline for implementing such systems, this chapter will introduce textile-based pressure force mapping sensing technology, from comparisons with other smart textile technologies to sensing principles, driving circuitry and finally several application examples.
Bo Zhou, Paul Lukowicz
Chapter 4. Strain- and Angular-Sensing Fabrics for Human Motion Analysis in Daily Life
Abstract
Human motion analysis concerns real-time tracking and recording of subject’s kinematics. The possibility to perform ambulatory and daily-life human motion monitoring would represent a breakthrough for many applications and disciplines. In this context, smart textiles can provide a valid alternative with respect to conventional solid-state sensors thanks to their low cost, lightweight, flexibility and possibility to be adapted to different body structures. The present chapter analyses the working principle, the manufacture and the characterisation of textile-based strain and angular sensors. The strain sensors are piezoresitive textiles that can be used to reconstruct the human movement by measuring the associated strain fields. The angular sensors can be manufactured by coupling two piezoresistive fabrics through an insulating layer and are able to directly measure angular displacement. These textile goniometers are not sensitive to the precise positioning and to the bending profile and provide a reliable measurement system which represents an important step forward in wearable human motion detection.
Federico Lorussi, Nicola Carbonaro, Danilo De Rossi, Alessandro Tognetti
Chapter 5. Integrated Non-light-Emissive Animatable Textile Displays
Abstract
Textile displays are a commonly investigated topic in the field of interactive textile research. Textile displays allow various display technologies to be embedded in the textile to enhance the textile to display images and animations on the textile. This work explores the development process of non-light-emissive displays using heat-sensitive thermochromic inks. In non-light-emissive textile displays, the display is more subtle and ambient, and has a natural form of color change. To actuate the thermochromic inks, we introduce the use of Peltier semiconductor elements along with a fine-tuned closed-loop temperature control system. The technology describes a robust, fast, and active controllability of the color of fabric. This controllability allows dynamic patterns to be displayed on the actual fabric in a programmable manner which is presented through a wide range of prototypes of textile displays. With the ubiquitous and subtle nature of this textile display system, we envision that it will be able to breathe life into the textiles (and even paper materials) of the future. Hence, we envision that the technology presented through this research would radically challenge the boundaries of current and future textile research and industry.
Roshan Lalintha Peiris
Chapter 6. Haptic Feedback for Wearables and Textiles Based on Electrical Muscle Stimulation
Abstract
Electrical muscle stimulation (EMS)—also known as functional electrical stimulation (FES)—has the potential to miniaturize haptic feedback technology and to integrate it into wearables and textiles. EMS offers a wide variety of haptic feedback, ranging from a small tingle to strong force feedback. In contrast to stationary force feedback systems and exoskeletons, EMS technology can easily be miniaturized as it does not require moving mechanical parts. Instead, EMS activates the user’s muscles. Textiles with embedded EMS technology offer the opportunity of ubiquitous haptic feedback. This kind of feedback is always available and can be applied to the whole body. In this chapter, we present the potential and limitations of EMS as a haptic feedback technology in wearable and textile-based computing. We begin with an in-depth literature review of haptic feedback and the design space of haptic feedback in general. Then, we describe the fundamentals of EMS, including typical placements of surface electrodes and specifics of textile EMS electrodes. This is followed by usage characteristics and safety issues of EMS feedback. Then, we present various application scenarios and introduce two research examples in depth, namely freehand interaction and pedestrian navigation with EMS feedback. Finally, we introduce a toolkit for haptic feedback prototyping and show how to apply it in different sample scenarios. We conclude this chapter with a discussion of research challenges and limitations, regarding EMS and textiles.
Max Pfeiffer, Michael Rohs
Chapter 7. Textile Antennas
Abstract
This chapter gives an overview of existing textile antennas and their applications. Issues are the trade-off between flexibility and conductivity of the textile, the influence of the body when the antenna is worn, and the bending and wrinkling of the antennas due to their textile nature.
Andreas Mehmann
Chapter 8. Electronics Integration
Abstract
In the past two decades, wearable computing has brought together different fields of research as well as industry. The idea of wearing a computer as a part of the clothing led to an increased effort in both industry and research to seamlessly integrate electronics and textiles. Having significantly different properties, textiles and electronics pose a challenge to mechanical, material, textile and electronics engineers. To address these challenges, in this chapter, different levels of textile-electronics integration are analysed: fibre level, textile material level and garment level. At the fibre level, microelectronics (e.g. transistors and sensors) are either directly fabricated on fibres or bonded onto the fibres using a specialised fabrication process. At the level of the textile material, textile is manufactured using conventional and conductive fibres. In later steps, conductive fibres are modified and interfaced with electronics. At the garment level, textile is the substrate material and the integration happens on the surface of a garment. Embroidery technique, lamination or screen printing are used to integrate the electronics on the textile. The principles of textile-electronics integration are described using representative examples from state-of-the-art research.
Matija Varga
Chapter 9. Reversible Contacting for Smart Textiles
Abstract
Smart textiles include integrated sensors and actuators, which are connected to electronics to read or control. Various ways of connecting electronics to textiles exist. In this chapter, we will give an overview of these electronics-to-textile connector prototypes. While the different connection types have advantages and disadvantages, there is a trade-off between the size and the number of connections. The electronics can be fabricated with pitches of 0.2 mm, but the textile part has lower limits on the size given by the textile fabrication processes such as stitching and weaving. The connection can be fixed, which implies better reliability and less rigid components, or removable, which allows the separation of textile and electronics for charging or washing.
Andreas Mehmann, Matija Varga, Gerhard Tröster
Chapter 10. Energy Harvesting Smart Textiles
Abstract
The ever-increasing population of the world is putting a significant demand on the need for multifunctional electronic devices and electricity to power them. This growing demand has led to an enhanced focus on the development of energy harvesting techniques based on renewable and ambient sources. Although materials having unique properties such as photovoltaic, piezoelectric and triboelectric have been known for a long time and have been utilized usually in the form of thin-film structures, their utilization in the form of textile structures for energy harvesting is a relatively new area of research. This chapter will focus on the recent advances in the area of photovoltaic, piezoelectric and triboelectric energy-generating textile structures and the fundamentals of these unique properties, production methods and textile-based energy storage. Finally, expected future trends in the fabrication and application of textile-based energy harvesting and storage will be discussed.
Derman Vatansever Bayramol, Navneet Soin, Tahir Shah, Elias Siores, Dimitroula Matsouka, Savvas Vassiliadis
Chapter 11. A Strategy for Material-Specific e-Textile Interaction Design
Abstract
The interaction design of electronic textile (or e-Textile) products is often characterised by conventions adopted from electronic devices rather than developing interactions that are specific to e-Textiles. We argue that textile materials feature a vast potential for the design of novel digital interactions. In particular, the shape-reformation capabilities of textiles may inform the design of expressive and aesthetically rewarding applications. In this chapter, we propose ways in which the textileness of e-Textiles can be better harnessed. We outline an e-Textile Interaction Design strategy that is based on defining the material specificity of e-Textiles as its ability to deform in ways that match the expectations we have of textile materials. It embraces an open-ended exploration of interactions related to textiles (e.g., stretching, folding, turning inside out) and their potential for electronic recognisability for deriving material-specific concepts and applications for e-Textiles.
Ramyah Gowrishankar, Katharina Bredies, Salu Ylirisku
Chapter 12. Designing for Smart Clothes and Wearables—User Experience Design Perspective
Abstract
Due to the recent years’ advances in prototyping techniques, flexible electronics, and component miniaturization, research has emerged to explore novel concepts and functionalities for wearable computing. So far, the attention has been mostly toward technical rather than user experience studies, seeking to illustrate novel and proof-of-concept-level functional prototypes. In this chapter, wearable computing is approached from the user experience (UX) design point of view. The principles of UX design are discussed with respect to the area of designing smart clothes and accessories, and three examples of concept designs, focusing on young athletes, a solar powered coat design, and a smart handbag design, are presented.
Jonna Häkkilä
Chapter 13. Designing (Inter)Active Costumes for Professional Stages
Abstract
This chapter deals with smart costumes that are made for the usage on professional stages, e.g., theatre, ballet or performances of pop stars. Such costumes can be active or interactive depending on whether they are reactive to their wearers or the environment, or not. The requirements of (inter)active costumes are different in comparison with conventional costume design because the individual computational features have to be developed and integrated properly. Creating, staging and maintaining them challenge in particular the established structures of traditional production houses in theatre. This chapter analyses the crafting process of (inter)active costumes for the performances of singers or musicians and for professional theatre or ballet. Furthermore, it seeks to outline the requirements that are needed to succeed.
Michaela Honauer
Chapter 14. Textile Building Blocks: Toward Simple, Modularized, and Standardized Smart Textile
Abstract
Textiles are pervasive in our life, covering human body and objects, as well as serving in industrial applications. In its everyday use of individuals, smart textile becomes a promising medium for monitoring, information retrieval, and interaction. While there are many applications in sport, health care, and industry, the state-of-the-art smart textile is still found only in niche markets. To gain mass-market capabilities, we see the necessity of generalizing and modularizing smart textile production and application development, which on the one end lowers the production cost and on the other end enables easy deployment. In this chapter, we demonstrate our initial effort in modularization. By devising types of universal sensing fabrics for conductive and non-conductive patches, smart textile construction from basic, reusable components can be made. Using the fabric blocks, we present four types of sensing modalities, including resistive pressure, capacitive, bioimpedance, and biopotential. In addition, we present a multi-channel textile–electronics interface and various applications built on the top of the basic building blocks by ‘cut and sew’ principle.
Jingyuan Cheng, Bo Zhou, Paul Lukowicz, Fernando Seoane, Matija Varga, Andreas Mehmann, Peter Chabrecek, Werner Gaschler, Karl Goenner, Hansjürgen Horter, Stefan Schneegass, Mariam Hassib, Albrecht Schmidt, Martin Freund, Rui Zhang, Oliver Amft
Chapter 15. Smart Textiles and Smart Personnel Protective Equipment
Abstract
Wearable computing and smart textiles are the enablers for smartPPE (Personnel Protective Equipment). Was wearable computing first the idea to integrate computing power into clothing to, e.g., access information, we observe in recent years a split into two domains: wearable computers as smartphones, glasses and wristbands on one side and smart textiles on the other side. The research here described in some detail deals with a specific domain where these two developments meet: the smartPPE where the smart textile gathers sensor information and the wearable computer automatically generates context information to protect the health status of the person wearing the smart textile. This can be necessary due to perilous environments or chronic diseases.
Dongyi Chen, Michael Lawo
Chapter 16. Textile Integrated Wearable Technologies for Sports and Medical Applications
Abstract
Innovative and pervasive monitoring possibilities are given using textile integration of wearable computing components. We present the FitnessSHIRT (Fraunhofer IIS, Erlangen, Germany) as one example of a textile integrated wearable computing device. Using the FitnessSHIRT, the electric activity of the human heart and breathing characteristics can be determined. Within this chapter, we give an overview of the market situation, current application scenarios, and related work. We describe the technology and algorithms behind the wearable FitnessSHIRT as well as current application areas in sports and medicine. Challenges using textile integrated wearable devices are stated and addressed in experiments or in explicit recommendations. The applicability of the FitnessSHIRT is shown in user studies in sports and medicine. This chapter is concluded with perspectives for textile integrated wearable devices.
Heike Leutheuser, Nadine R. Lang, Stefan Gradl, Matthias Struck, Andreas Tobola, Christian Hofmann, Lars Anneken, Bjoern M. Eskofier
Chapter 17. e-Garments: Future as “Second Skin”?
Abstract
Wearing clothing is exclusively a human characteristic. Conventional garment has become the second skin of humans which they missed by nature for the protection purpose that over time transformed the human body into a social and cultural symbol. The history of clothing is immediately linked with the history of textiles, and they are changing every day in line with technological advances and market pressure. Since the 1990s, electronic textiles or e-textiles have been introduced as new emerging concepts and prototypes. Early published literature and journals on the fields of textiles, electronics, and advanced materials have indicated that e-textile-based garment would have a great impact in textile industry to fabricate human second skin replacing the traditional clothes when enhanced properties are needed. More than two decades have elapsed since researchers in this field have begun to work on e-garments achieving excellent results, but these findings have not taken off significantly in terms of market success and consumer adoption. In this chapter, we discuss that a transition from a technology-driven product to a human-driven product can make e-garments the e-second skin for a mass market.
Aurora De Acutis, Danilo De Rossi
Metadata
Title
Smart Textiles
Editors
Stefan Schneegass
Oliver Amft
Copyright Year
2017
Electronic ISBN
978-3-319-50124-6
Print ISBN
978-3-319-50123-9
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-50124-6