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Technology in Clothing Industry and its Future

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Marcus Jensen
Technology in Clothing Industry and its Future

The idea of smart clothing has been floating around for some years, but until now, little has come of it. We have been fixated on bands and watches, but there are probably better places to put a bunch of sensors than your wrist. So why not make fitness clothing? Companies should start thinking about the clothes we wear every day and think a lot beyond counting steps if we want wearables to be truly wearable and useful. That kind of technology should provide us with actionable suggestions for the improvement of our wellbeing.

Smart Fitness Clothing

Big companies like OMSignal, Google, Under Armour, Samsung, and Hexo Skin have begun developing clothes that are to be as smart as your phone. Most smart clothing is fitness-focused with fitness metrics that are incredibly accurate and provide detailed analysis of workouts. We can easily say that these smart clothing pieces are the future of wearable tech.

There’s no extra effort to put into wearing a smart T-shirt or bra in the morning. Unlike smart watches or smart jewelry, that are not that futuristic and have an appeal to the average person, while wearable technology is at its best exactly when it isn’t obvious. The sensors can be easily incorporated into any kind of clothing and are much more easily customizable when compared to other types of wearables. So, instead of remembering to carry a fitness tracker to the gym, all you will have to do is wear proper gym clothes.

Smart Clothing Manufacturers

Ivan Popuyrev, the founder of Google Project Jacquard, has shown a new way for weaving touch panels into conventional fibers. Google uses yarn that has a conductive metal core mixed with conventional fabrics. To make their dream of smart clothing come true, Google has teamed up with Levi’s and other clothing companies. They use traditional, old-fashioned techniques of textile manufacturing.

CircuiteX technology, made by Noble Biomaterials, creates conductive components in smart clothing. According to Bennett Fisher, the company’s general manager, the garments’ threads allow for the detection, transmission, and protection of electrical signals. What you’re wearing becomes a sensor once it is inside the garment.

What about recent wearable prototypes by Samsung, or smart sports bra patterns from OMSignal? These devices are great wearables because they don’t look like they contain smart technology. Joe’s Jeans has recently made a special model of skinny jeans for women, with a special pocket for charging up an iPhone 6 (gadgets that come with backpacks and purses, for charging your phone on the go, are already popular).

Problems with Current Fitness Wearables

The wrist is a tricky spot for some metrics (especially breathing rate and muscle tension), so getting all the data accurate is still a problem they can’t get rid of. Even the most popular fitness trackers can misread hand gestures for number of steps, thus exaggerating step count. However, placing trackers on your foot or hip can offer more accurate measurements, and it’s what many researchers agree upon.

Perhaps the most logical place to place vital-monitoring sensors is underwear, because it’s a piece of clothing that’s closest to your skin. Smart bras can measure muscle tension, heart rate, and breathing to determine activity, stress level, anxiety, and a number of different wellness and health metrics. The same goes for undershirts, socks, and smart boxers. OMSignal and Sensoria have smart workout shirts and bras that can be worn under gym or regular clothes. Sensoria also offers smart socks with a conductive thread and an attachable sensor, while Hexo Skin offers similar smart shirts.

It’s Not Just for “Gym Rats”

These companies hope to enter the medical world of wearable technology with their smart clothing innovations. For example, people with heart conditions could be alerted to any physiological changes before an emergency condition strikes, and smart clothing can send notifications to you and medical personnel that you’re in need of assistance.

Most people, not just gym enthusiast, would like to know their health and wellness condition, which means that you don’t have to exercise in order to take advantage of all the benefits that smart clothing can bring. It would make everything easier, and you wouldn’t have to wear something you wouldn’t normally put on, making it easier to keep track of your overall physical condition without having to go to the gym.

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Marcus Jensen
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