Expanding the possibilities with e-fibers and yarns

April 25th, 2022

A prototype vibration-sensing glove incorporates four vibration-sensing e-yarns: two at the palm and two on the index finger. Photo: The Advanced Textiles Researcher Group, Nottingham Trent University. Electronic or e-yarns are a natural development within e-textiles as the sector strives for greater miniaturization, flexibility and a more seamless integration of electronics and textiles. Emerging, in […]

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International Achievement Award competition is underway

April 25th, 2022

The International Achievement Awards (IAA) offer a way for industrial fabric companies from around the world to showcase innovations, technical skill and design excellence in a variety of categories, including “advanced textiles,” and ­­a range of subcategories. Designers, manufacturers or subcontractors of specialty fabric end-products qualify for this competition. All projects entered in the IAA's […]

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Smart textiles market growth expected to continue

April 25th, 2022

The smart textiles market is expected to grow from USD 2.3 billion in 2021 to USD 6.6 billion by 2026, says a report by Marketsandmarkets. The major driving factors include implementation of advanced technologies in smart textiles, miniaturization of electronic components and expanding wearable industry. Energy harvesting and thermoelectricity function will have the highest CAGR during the […]

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Progress through collaboration

April 25th, 2022

Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA) presented and exhibited at the Smart Fabrics Summit, showing AFFOA advanced functional fiber preforms and advanced fibers demonstrating semiconductor devices (LED chips) embedded into fibers. The Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA) continues to be in the forefront of new developments in technologies for advanced textile systems. Michelle Farrington, […]

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NASA to test centrifugal force satellite launcher

April 25th, 2022

SpinLaunch's kinetic launch facility at Spaceport America, New Mexico, has completed sub-orbital test launches with exit velocities over 1,000 mph. Image: SpinLaunch. NASA has agreed to test SpinLaunch's technology, designed to launch a satellite into space at hypersonic speeds with an electric centrifuge instead of a rocket. The company says that modern carbon fiber is […]

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Centennial College receives smart fabrics funding

April 11th, 2022

Centennial College, Toronto, Canada, and its partners have received $4 million in multi-year funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) to develop products for the global e-textile market, as well as to assist small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the transportation, food production, energy and advanced manufacturing sectors. Centennial's Technology Access Centre (WIMTACH) was […]

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Getting to know you and what you do

April 11th, 2022

The first Smart Fabrics Summit was co-sponsored by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce and held in Washington, D.C. in April 2016 and brought together participants that typically do not talk to each other. That’s not because they don’t like each other; it was simply because they do different things and didn't know each other. That […]

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A new method for prototyping wearable sensors

April 11th, 2022

A stretchable “smart mesh” made from the two-mode cutting fabrication process. This device could be applied in skin-mounted sweat extraction and sensing. Photo: Peisheng He/UC Berkeley.  Engineers at the University of California Berkeley have developed a means that will enable medical researchers to prototype test new wearable sensor designs faster. Typically, researchers would build island-bridge […]

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Smart bandage releases medication when it senses heat 

April 11th, 2022

A microscopic image of the nanofibers used in a heat-activated wound dressing. Photo: Empa.  While antibiotics are very effective at treating infected wounds, it is generally agreed that they should be used only when necessary. Not only can antibiotics cause unwanted side effects, but their overuse may contribute to the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. A new experimental […]

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Student research showcased at the Smart Fabrics Summit

April 11th, 2022

Ph.D. candidate Zoe Newman demonstrated a new textile with highly stretchable and auxetic properties that was designed for combat uniforms.  With this year’s Smart Fabrics Summit taking place on the campus of North Carolina State University (NC State), another day of activities was added, which included student demonstrations and tours of the Zeis Textiles Extension […]

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