One of the most transformative technologies of the past few decades is the evolution of modular platforms. We started with big bricks, moved on to flip phones, and are now in an era of pocketable computers. They're multimedia Legos, capable of running apps, acting as the brains for hardware add-ons, and interacting wirelessly with other objects.
Borre Akkersdijk is trying to replicate that same evolution with clothing. Over the past few years, he's created several proof-of-concept pieces that reimagine clothing as input devices, Wi-Fi routers, and air purifiers. Depending on where his pieces are showcased, he switches up their technological functions to solve location-based problems.
Akkersdijk, who describes himself as a textile designer, studied at Eindhoven Design Academy in the Netherlands and the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. After school, he began experimenting with different kinds of knitting techniques, and a few years ago he was asked to help solve a common problem with the first wave of truly wearable technology.
"The Technical University of Eindhoven were doing a huge project called CRISP on smart textiles, and they bumped into the same problem every time," Akkersdijk explains. "They were just sticking the technology onto the textile. It was just sort of a sandwich. And they were looking for new ways and base layers to put their sensor technology into."
Predicting the first blockbuster product: vibrating underwear.
(Score: 2) by Gravis on Saturday July 04 2015, @09:14AM
the problem with "wearable technology" is that it needs batteries and batteries are generally incompatible with your washer and drier. what is needed is ultra-low-power electronics that run from an energy harvester built into the clothing. really though, we need to replace inflexible PCBs with something that is flexible in all three dimensions if you want it to be comfortable clothing. the only sound solution i can imagine (with current technology) is having the electronics and energy harvester on a super thin silicon die enclosed in plastic like a button on a shirt. if you need multiple sensors, they each get their own silicon and communicate wirelessly. it's currently expensive to make but that would result in real "smartclothes".
(Score: 2) by dyingtolive on Saturday July 04 2015, @06:09PM
Well, and it's a ONESIE. I'm not confident enough in my manhood to go walking down the road dressed up like a giant, exceptionally lumpy baby. (see: image in article link).
Don't blame me, I voted for moose wang!
(Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Sunday July 05 2015, @07:33AM
I guess in the early times of mobile phones you also would have denounced them, because who wants to run around with something like this at his ears? [wikimedia.org]
The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.