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Saturday, October 15, 2016

Introduction & general function of Smart Clothing.


Smart Clothes

OUTLINE:

Ø  What is Smart Clothes?
Ø  Current Development
Ø  Transition from research to marketplace
Ø  Trends
Ø  References

What is Smart Clothes?

Definition: Smart Clothes are smart textile-based wearable  systems. 
Beginning: 1990s.
Related Technologies: Wireless sensor networks (WSN), GPRS, Bluetooth, Micro-processing, etc.

Current Development:
  1. Healthcare Monitoring
  2. Communications
  3. Device Control
  4. Haptics

Healthcare Monitoring:

Foundations:
Ø  Smart textile or sensors embedded in textile
Ø  Microprocessor
Ø  Signal Processing
Wireless Communication                                    
                            

Process of Healthcare Monitoring :

Communications :

With wireless communication devices in the smart clothes, we can easily realize communications by adding microphone, earphone, screen and keyboard on the sleeve to control the “cell-phone”.
    Thus, we can achieve other functions which can be done by cell-phones, like locating, calculating, playing games, and the like.

Device Control:

We can add a special button on keyboard of the sleeve to order the micro-controller to search and build connection with certain devices through Bluetooth. Then we can still use the keyboard to control other devices. 

Haptics:

By adding vibrators and accelermeters in to the smart clothes, we can realize functions like “Hugme” haptic jacket.
    Also, if we want to have a relax, we can use the keyboard to active certain vibrators to have a massage.

Transition from research to marketplace :
Technology Success Factors
The success of any product in the marketplace depends on:
Ø  Effectiveness
Ø  Cost
Ø  Quality
Ø  Convenience
             
Effectiveness :

Effectiveness means the products can successfully understand the user’s needs and meet them.
Ø  Continuous monitoring. Heart disease,  Diabetes,  and Influenza
Ø  No discomfort and irritation.
Ø  Can be fashionable

Cost-Benefit Analysis :
u Monitoring of individual will indeed increase the cost.
Ø  However, “investment in prevention is a lot less than the total cost of treatment”. For chronic diseases, systematic intervention would save on expensive treatments.
Ø  What’s more, life is priceless.

Quality :
Smart clothes will improve the quality of care dramatically.
Ø  Real time
Ø  Deal with emergency
              Ø Automation of  data processing can eliminate any potential errors from manually recording the data.

Trends:

  1. Medical care T-shirt
  2. Clothes used for special profession
  3. Remote Device Control
  4. More accurate feedback


Medical care T-shirt

       Made of regular fabric, can be easily folded, washed, looks and feels familiar as a normal T-shirt
       It has implemented a whole sensor & processing system, this system can sense user’s heart beat rates, blood pressure et al.
       Can implement emergency measures like electrical CPR when heart beat rates become zero


Clothes of special profession:
       Fireman clothes:
Fireproof, Vibrator
and GPS system,  
communication system.
       Diving cloth:
Depth indicator, auxiliary equipment, Internal pressure adjustable

       Pilot clothes:
Height indicator, Physical sign monitor, communication system
       DIY the clothes you need:
You can design a clothes with any function you want


Remote device control:

       Control the electrical devices of our house, office et al.
       Using WiFi  or bluetooth to build up the connection
       Highly integrated, one button can control all the necessary facilities


More accurate feedback:

       Sensors can be more sensitive
       The smart clothes gives users a feedback in forms of pressure, sound, heat or any other sense-perception so that it can provide the user more information
       The feedback can be more accurate and reliable, so that it can be used in some special or emergency usages.








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