Let’s face it, one of the challenges of wearable electronics is that people are filthy. Anything you wear is going to get dirty. If it touches you, it is going to get sweat and oil and who knows what else? And on the other side it’s going to get spills and dirt and all sorts of things we don’t want to think about on it. For regular clothes, that’s not a problem, you just pop them in the washer, but you can’t say the same for wearable electronics. Now researchers at MIT have embedded diodes like LEDs and photodetectors, into a soft fabric that is washable.
Traditionally, fibers start as a larger preform that is drawn into the fiber while heated. The researchers added tiny diodes and very tiny copper wires to the preform. As the preform is drawn, the fiber’s polymer keeps the solid materials connected and in the center. The polymer protects the electronics from water and the team was able to successfully launder fabric made with these fibers ten times.
The waterproofing isn’t just good for the laundry. The fibers even work underwater as the team demonstrated by transmitting music through water in a fish tank.
We often see research like this and have to admit that practical use of it will be many years away, if ever. However, according to reports, commercial products using these fibers will start appearing in 2019.
“We often see research like this and have to admit that practical use of it will be many years away, if ever. However, according to reports, commercial products using these fibers will start appearing in 2019.”
Include some sensors and your clothes can tell you when the washer has gotten everything clean. One blink, dirty. Two blinks, clean.
How about bicycle/motorcycle/jogging apparel for night use?
I have seen a few backpacks for motorists with turn signals.
Their Alter Ego project is also pretty cool.
This opens up a whole new world of taping a “kick me” note on someones back.
So…
Sponsorship as videos on sports apparel?
Band tour shirts that play the music video?
Add sensors and some memory and people will look upon google glass fondly compared to the surveillance that could/would be going on…
Only 10 washes? C’mon, needs to be more robust than that
Coming soon: cute blinking flashy swimsuit for little kids that can double as beacon should a kid vanish.
as a scuba diver, I see that as a life saving invention.
Aren’t sharks attracted to electro-magnetic fields?
I never dive in shark populated places, because there are none where I live :)
I’m much more interested in cave diving, where seeing our buddies in every (sometime muddy) condition means : Avoiding a deadly accident.
I would love to crochet that stuff
just wait until naomi wu gets her hands on this stuff :)
(drool!)
Future developments will bring UV fibers that will sanitize the clothes, and ultra-sonic fibers that will shake the dust off…