TEXTILES.ORG
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) researchers have created an elastic fiber computer that can be woven into clothing to monitor the wearer’s health condition and physical activity.
Each fiber contains light sensors, a microcontroller, digital memory storage, Bluetooth® modules, optical communications and a battery. These microdevices allow the fiber to collect data and wirelessly send it to a device such as a smartphone.
Researchers made a shirt and a pair of leggings that featured four fiber computers, two in each clothing item. The fibers ran along the arms and legs of the garments and were programmed to follow a machine-learning model trained to recognize exercises performed by the wearer.
Initially, researchers tested the fibers by operating them independently; this resulted in an accuracy rate of about 70%. When the fibers communicated among themselves, however, the accuracy rate increased to nearly 95%.
Shirts made with the programmable fibers were to be tested in February by U.S. Army and Navy service members participating in Musk Ox II, a monthlong research mission in the Arctic. Participants were to wear base layers of merino mesh shirts made with the fibers to provide data on their health and activity as they traveled 1,000 kilometers (621.4 miles) in average temperatures of -40 F.
“Conventional systems just don’t provide me with a complete picture,” says Major Matthew Hefner, U.S. Army, commander of Musk Ox II. “We will be wearing the base-layer computing fabrics on us 24/7 to help us better understand the body’s response to extreme cold and ultimately predict and prevent injury.”
To fabricate the fiber computers, researchers used macroscopic versions of the fiber computer, called preforms, that connect each microdevice inside the fibers. The preform was then hung in a furnace, melted and pulled down to form a fiber. Once fabricated, the fiber is covered with traditional yarn such as polyester, merino wool, nylon or silk using a braiding technique.