Smart clothes: New tech turns everyday garments into motion trackers

Conductive threads stitched together could not only allow a fashionable person to adorn clothes as an act of expression but also to capture and record their body movements.

Scientists from the University of Bristol and the University of Bath have collaborated to make strides in this new wearable technology called SeamSleeve.

They undertook an empirical study to develop everyday clothes that can capture and record body movements.

Stitching seams with conductive threads to track motion

This has been achieved by blending conductive threads into the seams of garments that produce electrical circuits whose resistance changes with the wearer’s movements.

The ultimate aim was to design an enhanced version of digital clothing which accurately senses and records body movements.

This could apply to various applications such as healthcare and rehabilitation to consumer electronics and sports science, aiming to improve both health outcomes and user experiences.

The wearable technology is striving to outperform the abilities of current motion-sensing devices such as smartphones and smartwatches.

Providing precise movement data could also lead to more efficient monitoring and analysis of physical activities, potentially improving the wearer’s health and fitness goals.

Wearable tech to enhance exercise physiotherapy, rehabilitation

The study was presented at the Designing Interactive Systems (DIS) conference in Copenhagen earlier today as per a statement by the University of Bristol.

“It lays the foundations for e-textile designers and clothing manufacturers to create cutting-edge garments that could enhance exercise, physiotherapy and rehabilitation,” the statement noted.

Professor Mike Fraser of the University of Bristol’s School of Computer Science expressed that the team is excited by the opportunity for clothing manufacturers to implement our designs in sleeves and other garment seams.

“We’ve shown that common overlocked seams in standard garment constructions can do a good job of sensing movement,” he stated.

“The design avoids the need for a separate power source by pairing the seam with a charging coil, drawing the energy wirelessly from a mobile phone placed in the pocket.”

When low voltages pass through these threads, their resistance changes with the wearer’s movements, allowing the garment to detect and record subtle changes in posture and motion.

The smart outfit then transmits the data to the wearer’s phone which is placed in the pocket. Akin to Bluetooth functioning, this serves as both a power source and a data receiver.

AI programmes help in analysing the data on the phones that interpret specific gestures or postures, enabling applications in exercise monitoring, physiotherapy, and rehabilitation.

“This means advanced motion sensing garments could be made without altering existing manufacturing processes,” Fraser says.

“We have also shown that smartphone apps using advanced AI techniques can use this movement data to match body movement to specific postures or gestures such as physiotherapeutic exercises.”

The scientists curated a video to demonstrate the functioning of the new wearable technology in everyday clothing.

The video noted that the garment can capture a wide range of body movements while retaining traditional garment design benefits. The approach followed was to develop an interactive garment using seam design.

“A second study identified 12 different arm movements with potential applications in physiotherapy exercises beyond the clinic setting.”

The study was published earlier today [July 3, 2024] in the Proceedings of the Conference on Designing Interactive Systems 2024, Copenhagen, Denmark.