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INTL.

JOURNAL OF HUMANCOMPUTER INTERACTION, 25(6), 582617, 2009


Copyright Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
ISSN: 1044-7318 print / 1532-7590 online
DOI: 10.1080/10447310902997744

Review and Reappraisal of Smart Clothing

1532-7590
1044-7318
HIHC
Intl.
Journal of HumanComputer Interaction
Interaction, Vol. 25, No. 6, June 2009: pp. 00

Review
Cho,
Lee,
and
and
Reappraisal
Cho
of Smart Clothing

Gilsoo Cho, Seungsin Lee, and Jayoung Cho


Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea

Smart clothing is a smart system capable of sensing and communicating with


environmental and the wearers conditions and stimuli. A comprehensive review is
presented on the research and developments related to smart clothing including
technology developments, human aspects in smart clothing, and the applications.
Recent smart clothing technology can be summarized as a tendency toward textilebased technology for each component: interface, communication, data management,
energy management, and integrated circuits. Human aspects in smart clothing, even
though some areas were not fully covered, were dealt with in terms of usability,
functionality, durability, safety, comfort, and fashion. General applications of smart
clothing developed so far include bio-monitoring clothing, MP3 player-adopted
clothing, and photonic clothing.

1. INTRODUCTION
Clothing is a special environment that we need and use everyday. Clothing is an
environment that is personal, comfortable, close to the body and used almost
anywhere and anytime (Kirstein, Cottet, Grzyb, & Trster, 2005). People enjoy
clothing, with pleasures associated with its selection and wearing.
There is a need for an ambient intelligence where intelligent devices are
integrated into the everyday surroundings and provide a multitude of services to
everyone. As our lives become more complex, people want ambient intelligence
to be personalized, embedded, unobtrusive, and used anytime and anywhere.
Clothing would be an ideal place for intelligent systems because clothing could
enhance our capabilities without requiring any conscious thought or effort
(Mann, 1996). Clothing can build a very intimate form of interaction between
human and machine.
Smart clothing is a smart system capable of sensing and communicating with
environmental and the wearers conditions and stimuli. The stimulus and

We thank the Korean Ministry of Knowledge Economy for the financial support (project
no. 10016447).
Correspondence should be sent to Gilsoo Cho, Department of Clothing & Textiles, College of
Human Ecology, Yonsei University, 134 Shinchon-Dong, Sudaemun-Gu, Seoul 120-749, South Korea.
E-mail: gscho@yonsei.ac.kr

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response can be in electrical, thermal, mechanical, chemical, magnetic, or other


forms (Tao, 2001).
Smart clothing is distinct from wearable computers in that smart clothing
emphasizes the importance of clothing while it possesses the sensing and communication capabilities (Barfield et al., 2001). Wearable computers use conventional
technology to connect available electronics and attach them to clothing. The functional components are still bulky and rigid portable machines and remain as
nontextile materials. Although constant efforts have been made on miniaturization of electronic components for wearable electronics, true smart clothing can
be realized by transforming all the components into full textile materials. People
prefer to wear textiles because they are flexible, comfortable, lightweight, robust
and washable (Kirstein et al., 2005). To be a comfortable part of the clothing, it is
necessary to embed electronic functions in textiles so that both electronic functionality and textile characteristics are retained. Smart clothing should be easy to
keep and use and be washable like ordinary textiles. Therefore, combining wearable technology and clothing/textile science is essential to achieve smart clothing
for real wearability.
Smart clothing will find its applications in numerous fields, such as a medical
environment or in the military where smart clothing is designed to perform certain functions and support specialized activities. It will also find applications in
everyday clothing, for instance, for sports and leisure, with more emphasis on the
aesthetic as well as functionality.
Development of smart clothing requires multidisciplinary approach involving
textile science/engineering, information science, and human science. Although
there has been considerable advancement in smart clothing in various fields, the
progress was reviewed mainly from the perspective of an individual field. There
is a need for a more comprehensive review covering diverse perspectives.
The aim of this article is to provide an overview of the area of smart clothing.
First, recent developments in smart clothing technology are reviewed. Then
human aspects in smart clothing and the application of smart clothing are
reviewed.
2. SMART CLOTHING TECHNOLOGY
In smart technology for textiles and clothing, the extent of intelligence can be
divided into three subgroups (Tao, 2001): passive smart, active smart, and very smart
materials. Passive smart materials can only sense the environment; active smart
materials can sense the stimuli from the environment and also react to them; and
very smart materials take a step further, having the gift to adapt their behavior to
the circumstances, besides the sensor and actuator function.
A smart clothing system is composed of several basic components: interface,
communication, data management, energy management, and integrated circuits
(Tao, 2005a). An interface is a medium for transacting information between
devices and the wearer as well as between the wearer and environment. Communication provides a link between various components of smart clothing, transferring information and power. Data management refers to memory, computation,

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and data processing. Energy management relates to energy supply and storage.
Integrated circuits are miniature electronic circuits built on a semiconductor
substrate.
2.1. Interface Technologies
Input and output interfaces are used to transfer information between devices and
the wearer as well as between the wearer and environment.
Input Interface
In smart clothing systems, buttons and keyboards are used as input interfaces
that are relatively simple and easy to learn and implement (Tao, 2005a). For more
complex tasks, input interfaces such as voice recognition are needed. Devices
such as sensors are used to monitor context, which can be, for example, the physiological state of the wearer or the wearers location. Much effort has been made
on developing textile-based interface devices for use in smart clothing.
Textile-based buttons and keyboards. Conductivity in textiles is essential
in accomplishing smart clothing technology because the degree of electrical conductivity makes them pathways for carrying electronic information or energy for
a range of functions (Lam Po Tang & Stylios, 2006). Conductivity in textiles can be
imparted at various textile stages. Conductive polymers, fibers, yarns, fabrics,
embroidery, and finishing are vital components in constructing smart clothing
systems.
Textile-based buttons and keyboards have been developed based on various
mechanisms. The SOFTswitch (http://www.softswitch.co.uk) is one example
of a pressure sensitive textile material. It is made of conductive fabrics with a thin
layer of elasto resistive composite, which is called a quantum tunneling composite.
The composite has a characteristic to be an isolator in its normal condition and to
change in a metal-like conductor when it is compressed, transforming mechanical
pressure to electrical signals. The touch-sensitive material can be used as
switches and pressure sensors.
The Sensory Fabric (Swallow & Thompson, 2001) consists of two conductive
fabric layers separated by a meshed nonconductive layer. The system works by
contact between the two conductive layers through the holes in the nonconductive mesh when the material is pressed. This pressure-sensitive fabric can be used
for such items as switches, soft keypads, and pressure sensors.
Another system uses a multilayer structure to form a resistive touchpad.
ElekTex is a laminate of five fabric layers, in which the outer and central layers are
conductive and two insulating layers are around the central layer (http://
www.eleksen.com). When touched, the layers are compressed together to form an
electronic circuit and generate positional values (X and Y) with a low resolution
pressure measurement (Z).
A textile-based keypad developed at the Smart Wear Research Center, Yonsei
University is shown in Figure 1. The textile-based keypad was fabricated using a

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Switch fabric

Textile-based keypad

FIGURE 1 Switch fabric and textile-based keypad.

switch fabric in which stainless steel yarns are used as warp and filling with
other types of yarn and a metal dome switch is inserted. The switch fabric
works by contact between the conductive warp and filling yarns and the metal
dome switch when compressed.
Textile-based bio-monitoring sensors and electrodes. Sensors measure
and monitor biometric or environmental data and can act as an input interface
device. Fabric-based sensors and electrodes have been developed from conductive fabrics or fiber optics.
Biometric information. Textile sensors are used for the recording of electrocardiogram (ECG), respiration rate, heart rate, and so on. Conventional sensors
often cause problems because of their physical structure or functional requirements. They cause discomfort such as skin irritation either by the adhesive part of
the electrodes or the gel used with conventional ECG electrodes (Catrysse et al.,
2004). As an alternative to conventional sensors, textile sensors are developed to
overcome these inconveniences.
Van Langenhove and Hertleer (2004) reported developments of textile electrodes for ECG and heart rate measurements. The so-called Textrodes are made of
stainless steel fibers and have a knitted structure, making direct and close contact
with the body. They were incorporated into a belt to be worn around the thorax.
It was reported that the textile electrodes provide accurate signals, as compared
with conventional electrodes, despite the presence of additional noise. This
technology can be applied for monitoring of patients in clinical conditions and
healthcare, of sportsmen during intense physical activities, of professional workers
engaged in extreme environmental conditions, and so on.
At the Smart Wear Research Center, Yonsei University, textile-based ECG
electrodes were developed using embroidery. Stainless steel yarns were used to
embroider electrodes as shown in Figure 2. The embroidered electrodes were
attached to three types of knitted shirts with different spandex content from 0 to 7%
to examine the effect of fabric elasticity on ECG monitoring and the wearers comfort.
The performance of embroidered electrodes is further discussed in section 3.5.
In the work of Loriga, Taccini, De Rossi, and Paradiso (2005), conductive and
piezoresistive yarns were integrated in a knitted garment and used as sensor and
electrode elements to monitor cardiopulmonary activity. Strain fabric sensors

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FIGURE 2

ECG shirt with embroidered electrodes.

were realized based on conductive yarn as the piezoresistive domains. The fabrics
exhibited piezoresistive properties in response to an external mechanical stimulus, and a voltage divider was used to convert resistance acquired by fabric
piezoresistive sensors to voltage. Fabric electrodes were realized with a yarn in
which a stainless steel wire was twisted around a cotton-based yarn. Electrocardiogram and impedance pneumography signals were obtained from the fabric
sensors and electrodes.
Catrysse et al. (2004) developed a textile sensor, called the Respibelt, for
measuring respiration. Made of a stainless steel yarn and knitted in a Lycracontaining belt, the belt was able to provide an adjustable stretch. The Respibelt
was worn around the abdomen or thorax, and circumference and length changes
of the Respibelt from breathing were measured, which gives changes in resistance
and inductance. Thoracic changes in perimeter and cross-section were measured
through the resistance and inductance variation.
Brady et al. (2005) presented a foam-based pressure sensor that was integrated
into a garment for monitoring the wearers respiration rate. The sensor was fabricated by coating polyurethane foam with a conducting polymer, polypyrrole
(PPy). The conducting polymer coated foams were soft, compressible, and sensitive to forces from all three dimensions, unlike coated fabrics that work as twodimensional. The PPy coated foam sensors measure chest expansion based on
compression of the foam structure between the body and the garment, whereas
the conductive fabric sensors, described earlier, measure respiration rate based on
the expansion and contraction of the ribcage from the stretch of the sensor.
In recent years, fiber optic technologies have attracted much attention in that
they offer both sensing and signal transmission functions. Fiber Bragg-grating
(FBG) sensors are fabricated by modulating the refractive index of the core in a
single-mode optic fiber to detect the wavelength-shift induced by strain or
temperature change (Tian & Tao, 2001; D. Yang, Tao, & Zhang, 2001). FBG sensors

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contain a diffraction grid that reflects the incident light of a certain wavelength in
the direction from where the light is coming. The value of this wavelength
linearly relates to a possible elongation or contraction of the fiber. In this way, the
Bragg sensor can function as a sensor for deformation. They have been used for
the monitoring of the structural condition of fiber-reinforced composites, concrete
constructions or other construction materials. The potential applications of FBG
sensors in smart clothing include health monitoring, impact detection, shape
control, and so on.
Impact/hazard detection. In the work of Jayaraman and coworkers (Lind
et al., 1997; Park & Jayaraman, 2001), plastic optical fibers are used to monitor
fabric damage, which can provide a means of detecting location of impact
wounds for military applications. In the so-called wearable motherboard, plastic optical fiber is integrated into the garment during the fabric production process. Upon the penetration of a projectile, for example, bullets and shrapnel,
broken paths in the fabrics can provide information about the degree of damage
and location. This technology can be applied for protective clothing, providing
information on bullet penetration, chemical, thermal, physical, and biological
attacks. The information can then be used to provide medical treatment in the
event of injury.
El-Sherif, Yuan, and MacDiarmid (2000) developed fiber optic sensors and
integrated them into soldiers uniforms. The optical fibers have a chemical agent
or an environmentally sensitive cladding material, which can change the light
propagation characteristics of the fiber. The sensors can detect various battlefield
hazards, such as chemical, biological and thermal hazards.
Body movement/ body position of the wearer. Farringdon, Moore, Tilbury,
Church, and Biemond (1999) developed knitted stretch sensors that measure stretch
from resistive changes in knitted strips. Fabric is specially knitted to combine 10 mm
wide conductive threads. When the fabric is stretched, the resistance of these threads
alters, allowing monitoring the wearers movement.
There is growing interest on intrinsically conductive polymers (ICPs) for
use in smart clothing as sensors, actuators, and so on, as briefly mentioned in
the conducting polymer coated foam sensors. ICPs are promising candidates
for use in wearable systems because they possess mechanical properties as
well as the electrical, electronic, magnetic, and optical properties of a metal.
Examples of ICPs include PPy and polyaniline. ICPs alone or in blends with
conventional polymers can be used to produce conductive fibers or used as
coating materials.
De Rossi, Della Santa, and Mazzoldi (1999) reported that fabrics coated
with a thin layer of conducting polymers possess strain and temperature sensing properties. A combination of conducting polymer and fabric particularly
useful was PPy and Lycra because of high piezoresistive and thermoresistive
coefficients while being elastic and conformable to the human body. PPy-coated
Lycra fabrics compared well with sensitive strain gauge materials and inorganic
thermistors.

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Voice recognition (Audio interface). Randell and Muller (2000) developed


the Shopping Jacket in which a speech interface was integrated to assist with
the shopping activity. The jacket uses location-sensing systems to alert the wearer
that they are passing an interesting shop or to direct the wearer around a shopping mall. For the interaction between the user and the wearable system, a throat
microphone with speech recognition software was embedded into a conventional
sports blazer with other devices and provided the user input for commands and
audio notes.
Others. Baber (2001) reported developments of flex sensors that allow movement of fingers to correspond to numbers, which can act as an input interface
device. Fitted into the fingers of a glove, the flex sensor sends a digit via a microcontroller to the display when the wearer bends a finger. For instance, a single
bend sends 0 to 4, and a double bend corresponds to 5 to 9. The wearer can
change to a control mode via a small switch mounted on the thumb. The technology has a potential to offer a means of controlling devices or entering data.
Output Interface
An output interface is a medium by which information is presented to the
wearer. Visual, auditory and tactile interfaces are major means to interact
between human and wearable systems.
Visual interface. Visual displays are still the dominant output devices used
for conventional computing systems. To be worn on the human body as a part of
smart clothing, visual displays must be compliable and conformable to the body.
Developments of flexible displays for smart clothing have been ongoing.
Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) and polymeric light-emitting diodes
have attracted considerable attention in recent years for use in flat panel displays
where liquid crystal displays are currently the major display technology. The
advantages of OLEDs over other display technologies are that they have high
contrast, a high level of brightness, and full viewing angle, and they require much
less power (Tao, 2005b). Flexible OLEDs, that is, OLEDs fabricated on a flexible
substrate such as plastic or metallic foil, have a strong potential for use in smart
clothing because they are very light and conformable. Conjugated polymers have
shown to provide good flexibility and mechanical properties, making them promising candidates for flexible OLEDs.
Textile-based flexible displays based on optical fibers have been investigated as well. In the work of Koncar, Deflin, and Weill (2005), poly(methylmethacrylate) optical fibers with a diameter of 0.5 mm were used with other
textile yarns in weaving to construct an optical fiber flexible display. Flexible
displays were created on textiles by producing a screen matrix. A small electronic device was integrated into the system to control the light emitting diodes
(LEDs), which illuminate groups of fibers. Various weave construction can be
applied in weaving optical fibers, including dobby and jacquard weaves as
well as basic weaves.

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Audio interface. Audio interfaces are used in many portable devices.


Auditory displays are useful in that they do not require ones full attention or disrupt the foreground activity.
In the work of Sawhney and Schmandt (1998), techniques and issues related to
the use of speech and audio in wearable interfaces were discussed. They reported
designs of audio devices for wearable systems (e.g., Nomadic Radio, Radio Vest,
and Soundbeam Necklace) and demonstrated a wearable audio interface utilizing
various interaction techniques. The infrastructure for the concept of Nomadic
Radio and design concepts for the functioning of such a system were developed.
Vibration (Tactile) interface. Tactile displays are another means to interact
between human and machine. Tactile displays are an effective tool especially for
smart clothing in that clothing is always in close proximity to our skin where
touch receptors are. Tactile displays will not conflict with audio or visual displays
and might be useful in presenting information when those other displays are
physically or socially inappropriate.
In the work of Tan and Pentland (1997), initial work on the development of a
wearable tactile display was reported. A 3 3 array of micromotors was embedded in the back of a vest, which delivered vibrational patterns to the back of the
wearer. Tests with several stimulation patterns showed that the wearers were
able to perceive directional information from the vibrational patterns. This might
be useful for conveying directional information in applications such as navigation
guidance.
Toney, Dunne, Thomas, and Ashdown (2003) demonstrated integrating a
vibrotactile display and support electronics into a standard clothing insert, the
shoulder pad, using electromagnetic motors. They proposed guidelines for
design and integration of a shoulder-mounted tactile interface and showed that
such a shoulder worn tactile display can make use of multiple stimulators at a
low level of resolution.
Conductive polymer actuation properties are receiving much attention in
recent years. Fabrics containing conductive polymer fiber bundles that contract
and relax under electrical control can be used as a tactile output interface
(De Rossi et al., 1999). In their work, spun conductive polymer fibers such as polyaniline exhibited electrochemical actuation.
Others. Shape memory materials are materials that are able to return to a
prescribed shape with the right stimuli such as heat or an electrical current.
A temperature change is normally used to stimulate shape memory materials,
and the transformation is because of changes in its internal structure with temperature (Lam Po Tang & Stylios, 2006). The two most common forms of shape memory material are shape memory alloys (SMA) and shape memory polymers
(SMP).
SMAs can exist in the form of yarn, making them comparable with textile
materials. Nickel-titanium and copper-based alloys are typical examples of SMAs
(Lane & Craig, 2003). In the work of Winchester and Stylios (2003), SMA was
spun in combination with traditional fibers and created bicomponent yarns,

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which were then developed into knitted structures. In a shirt developed by Corpo
Nove (http://www.corponove.it), SMA was woven with traditional textile material. The shirt shortens its sleeves when the temperature increases, and creases in
the fabric disappear when stimulated.
SMPs exhibit higher extensibility, superior processability, lower weight, and
better hand and touch, compared with SMAs (Lam Po Tang & Stylios, 2006).
Examples of SMPs include segmented polyurethane-based polymers, crosslinked
poly(cyclooctene) and poly(lactic acid) and poly(vinylacetate) blends. SMPs can
be extruded as fibers and used as filament yarns or spun in combination with
other fibers, which can be incorporated into knitted or woven structures (Chan
Vili, 2007).
2.2. Communication
Communication refers to information and power transfer between various components of smart clothing. Short-range communications include communications
within a wearable device and those between two wearable devices on the user.
Long-range communications refer to communications between two users (Tao,
2005a). Diverse techniques exist for textile-based networks.
Short-Range Communications
In smart clothing systems, on-body communications can be wired or wireless,
including embedded wiring, infrared, and Bluetooth technology.
Embedded wiring. Considerable work has been done on replacing traditional wires with textile-based networks for use in smart clothing. Different
techniques including conductive fibers, yarns, fabrics, embroidery, and optical
fibers have been examined.
In the work of Post and Orth (1997), electronic circuits were built using various
conductive textiles. Conductor lines were realized by embroidering metal fibers
or weaving silk threads that were wrapped in thin copper foil. Gripper snaps, a
common sewing closure, were used as interconnects between conductive fabrics
and electronics (Post, Orth, Russo, & Gershenfeld, 2000). Electric suspender
developed by Gorlick (1999) contains stainless steel conductors for power and
data buses.
In the work of Dhawan, Seyam, Ghosh, and Muth (2004), conductive threads
were woven to develop woven fabric-based electrically conductive circuits. Conductive and nonconductive threads were arranged and interlaced to form woven
conductive networks, and interconnects were developed at the crossover points
of orthogonal conductive threads.
Textile-based transmission lines shown in Figure 3 were developed using
Teflon-coated stainless steel yarns at the Smart Wear Research Center, Yonsei
University. The conductive bands were fabricated by weaving with the stainless
steel yarn as warp and polyester yarns as filling and warp. Five strands of signal
transmission lines were placed 2.54 mm from each other in the warp direction of

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FIGURE 3 Textile-based transmission lines.

the band, and the width of the band was set at 14 mm to allow easy connection
with regular connectors. The bands were very flexible as illustrated in the figure.
The transmission lines can be used as a textile-based network connecting various
electronic components in smart clothing.
Jayaraman and coworkers (Lind et al., 1997; Park & Jayaraman, 2001) developed a garment in which electrically conductive fiber and plastic optical fibers
transfer information from sensors to processing units. As mentioned earlier, the
garment was designed for military use, monitoring vital signs in combat personnel, detecting bullet wounds, and transferring information on bullet penetration.
These tasks were performed by interfiber electrical connections and connectors
for power and data interconnects to and from the garment.
Wireless short-range communications. Infrared communication is widely
used on remote controls, laptops, and digital cameras. Starner, Kirsch, and Assefa
(1997) reported the development of the Locust Swarm system, which provides
messaging and location information. The system used infrared to transfer indoor
position information. Infrared has the line-of-sight requirement, which can be a
limitation, but it is inexpensive and suitable for a short-range data transfer.
Bluetooth is a new technology that connects and transfers information between
electronic devices over a short-range radio frequency. Bluetooth technology has
been used for a short-range data transfer in various smart clothing systems (Hung,
Zhang, & Tai, 2004; Naya, Noma, Ohmura, & Kogure, 2005). Hung, Zhang, and Tai
(2004) investigated use of Bluetooth technology in combination with wearable
sensors to provide real-time vital sign monitoring of remote patients. In the work
of Naya et al. (2005), a Bluetooth-based indoor proximity detection method was
proposed for location awareness in nursing context. Proximity information
exchanged between Bluetooth devices attached to people and medical apparatus
helps estimating location of a nurse, patient, and medical equipment.

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A personal area network that relies on the human body as a transmission


medium was developed by the MIT Media Lab in collaboration with IBM (Post,
Reynolds, Gray, Paradiso, & Gershenfeld, 1997). The network takes advantage of
the natural salinity of the human body to transmit electronic data. The natural
salinity of the human body makes it an excellent conductor of electrical current.
This technology could be used to transmit electronic data such as an electronic
business card between two people during a simple handshake. Although security
can be a problem in that touching a body equipped with a personal area network
could be tapping into a telephone line, using the human body to transmit data
would be a convenient and cost-efficient way.
Long-Range Communications
Wireless connections are necessary for large-area communication systems.
Among various communication systems, the Global System for Mobile communications is suitable for small-sized data transfer such as voice transmission. The
Third Generation wireless system can transfer larger files such as pictures and
videos.
2.3. Data Management Technologies
Data management technologies relate to memory, computation, and data processing. Electronic components are still used for those tasks in smart clothing systems
because there are no textile materials on hand that can perform such tasks up to
now. Yet progress has been made in the direction of miniaturization of the electronic components and development of flexible substrates so that the electronics
can be incorporated into clothing in the least obtrusive way.
2.4. Energy Management Technologies
The major problem with power supplies used for conventional wearable electronics is that they are bulky, heavy, and rigid with limited lifetime. Usually the biggest and heaviest part in the wearable electronics is energy supply and storage,
and they need to be recharged with current levels of power consumption. For use
in smart clothing, power supplies must be flexible and light to be capable of being
incorporated into clothing and not to be a burden to the wearer. They should be
long-lasting and easy to recharge on the move, or use alternative energy sources
without the need for recharging. They should be resistant to washing and to wear.
Several approaches have been made to reduce the size and weight of the electronic components so that they can be integrated into clothing as unobtrusively as
possible and to develop novel energy supply technologies from various sources
(e.g., sunlight, heat, vibration, etc.).
Research has been ongoing to miniaturize the electronic components for
energy supplies. Bharatula, Zinniker, and Trster (2005) reported development of
a miniaturized hybrid micropower supply for wearable-pervasive sensors, using
a lithium-ion button battery and a photo voltaic module with power management

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circuitry. Power management techniques enable electronic devices to perform


more efficiently with the limited power, making the battery-powered electronics
live longer.
Alternatives to batteries are the use of solar energy, body heat, mechanical
stimuli, etc. for energy sources. Photovoltaic (PV) technology, especially thin film
technology that enables the production of flexible structures, has gained much attention. In a solar-powered jacket from Scottevest Inc. (http://www.scottevest.com),
thin film PV Copper Indium Gallium Diselenide, one of flexible photovoltaic
materials, was placed onto a thin stainless steel substrate and formed the detachable solar panel. Thin film PV materials such as amorphous silicon or Copper
Indium Gallium Diselenide can be layered onto a flexible polymeric film. Baps,
Eber-Koyuncu, and Koyuncu (2002) presented the adaptation of flexible solar cell
technology to fiber form. A flexible tubular solar cell was assembled utilizing
stainless steel yarn as internal electrode, semiconductive nanosized TiO2 powder,
and organic dyes to sensitize the TiO2 powder. The assembly of electrode, ceramic
powder, and electrolyte was incorporated into a transparent polymer tube coated
with conductive polymer on the inside.
Another approach to develop novel energy supply technologies is thermoelectric
conversion, transforming the temperature difference between the human body and
environment into an electrical energy. Infineon (Jung, Lauterbach, Strasser, &
Weber, 2003) developed a miniaturized silicon-based thermogenerator to harness
the energy from body heat and convert it into electrical power. The generator was
integrated into the fabric of the clothes to make good thermal contact to the skin in
order to obtain a large temperature difference between the body and environment.
Other approaches employ mechanical motion. Human motion can stimulate
vibrational microgenerators, thus producing powers. For example, piezoelectric
inserts in a shoe will generate electrical energy from heel strikes. For use in
smart clothing, piezoelectric polymer materials can be better candidate materials
as compared with non-textile piezoelectric materials in terms of flexibility and
comfort.
2.5. Integrated Circuits
Integrated circuits are made out of semiconductor materials, and silicon is the
material most often used in integrated circuit fabrication. However, the rigidity of
silicon chips led to look for an alternative material that is flexible for use in
wearable systems. Conductive polymeric materials have emerged as promising
materials for such use since they are flexible, lightweight, and robust (Tao, 2005a).
There has been significant progress in smart clothing technology since the first
generation of wearable computers. Due to advances in integration technology,
bulky and rigid portable machines attached to wearable systems became a part of
smart clothing, embedded inside the clothing. New materials, structures, and
techniques led to the stage of commercialization. Biomonitoring smart clothing
systems such as LifeShirt are commercially available. Yet a larger part is still
remained for true smart clothing in which all the components are in full textile
materials. Active research on developing textile-based integrated circuits and

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energy supplies is required. For real wearability, issues such as maintenance and
durability need to be addressed as well. Human aspects in smart clothing, which
is another integral part to consider in smart clothing, is discussed in the following
section.
3. HUMAN ASPECTS IN SMART CLOTHING
Because smart clothing pursues integration of clothing and electronic devices, it
must create the functions that users would like their clothing to exhibit, not mere
miniaturization of electronics. To make smart clothing to effectively interact with
users and environments, it is necessary to consider human aspects in smart clothing.
Human aspects of smart clothing are derived from the integrated characteristics
of both clothing and electronic devices. As shown in Figure 4, the characteristics
of electronic devices are usability, functionality, durability, and safety, whereas
the characteristics of clothing include comfort, fashion, durability, and safety.
Thus smart clothing needs to be simultaneously equipped with the usability and
functionality of electronic devices along with the comfort and fashion of clothing,
in addition to the safety and durability, the two common features shared by both
clothing and electronic devices.
3.1. Usability
Usability is a key factor associated with interfaces of smart clothing. In other
words, it should provide easy input and output interfaces. As Nielson (1993)
pointed out, usability has multiple components and is traditionally associated
with these five usability attributes: learnability, efficiency, memorability, errors,
and satisfaction.
Learnability: The system should be easy to learn so that the user can rapidly
start getting some work done.
Efficiency: The system should be efficient to use, so that once the user has
learned the system, a high level of productivity is possible.

Electronic devices

Clothing

Usability

Durability

Comfort

Functionality

Safety

Fashion

FIGURE 4 Human aspects in smart clothing.

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Memorability: The system should be easy to remember, so that the casual user
is able to return to the system after some period of not having used it, without having to learn everything all over again.
Low error rate: The system should have a low error rate, so that users make
few errors during the use of the system. When and if they do make errors,
they should be able to recover from them easily. Furthermore, catastrophic
errors must not occur.
Satisfaction: The system should be pleasant to use.
ISO 9241-11 (ISO, 1988) suggests measuring usability on three levelseffectiveness,
efficiency, and satisfaction. Therefore, usability in smart clothing could be a function of the cognitive requirements associated with interactive matters.
Research on usability of smart clothing and wearable computers can be found
in several papers. Gorlenko and Merrick (2003) discussed the usability of smart
clothing in a general way. However, Chae and colleagues (Chae et al., 2007a; Chae
et al., 2007b) focus on the establishment of a usability test tool and evaluation of
smart clothing products using the test tool.
Gorlenko and Merrick (2003) discussed the challenges of usability for mobile
wireless computing. The most obvious challenge is dealing with the requirement
of mobility. The complexity of wearables presents serious challenges not only in
the design process but also in the design methodology. To ensure the userorientation of the products, the goal of usability assessment should make the user
part of the design process, reducing the need for producing expensive and timeconsuming physical prototypes.
Chae et al. (2007a) developed a usability evaluation tool consisting of 53 questionnaires on the usability of smart clothing. The questionnaires obtained from
observations and wearing tests include five categories: social acceptance, feeling
of wearing, utility, easiness of maintenance, and safety. They have also applied
the tool in evaluating the MP3 smart clothing products (Chae et al., 2007b). Their
result indicated that improvement on the keypad interface is the most frequently
requested improvement.
3.2. Functionality
To implement the five kinds of technologies (interface, communication, energy
management, data management, integrated circuits) in the smart clothing system,
the wearable technology should be applied to each of them. The functionality of
each smart clothing technology needs to be evaluated. Currently, the textile-based
input interface and communication devices have been actively developed: textilebased keypads, textile electrodes for interface technology, and textile-based signal
transmission lines for wireless communication technology. Functionality of smart
clothing has been dealt with in a few papers. We introduce three works regarding
the functionality test on keypads and ECG electrodes.
To test the functionality of keypads, Cho, Moon, Sung, Jeong, and Cho (2007)
compared subjective evaluation and measured operation forces of the two types
of keypads, one with metal domes and the other with rubber domes. The result

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(a) Metal dome switch

(b) Rubber domes witch

FIGURE 5 Operation forces of switches for textile-based keypads.

showed that rubber dome keypads with 62 gf of operation force were preferred to
metal dome keypads with 320 gf of operation force (Figure 5). Likewise, optimization of the feedback is a key aspect for keypads construction.
There have been researches on the performance of textile-based ECG electrodes,
which were developed to replace AgCl ECG electrodes commercially available for
medical use. Jang, Cho, Jeong, and Cho (2007) developed a type of electrode made
of Cu-sputtered polyester fabric, and Cho, Jang, and Cho (2007) constructed
another type of electrode by embroidering stainless steel yarns on a cotton fabric.
To make Cu-sputtered fabrics for ECG electrodes, Cu-sputtering was performed on water-resistant nylon fabrics in a vacuum chamber by applying a high
voltage across a low-pressure argon gas. For the ECG measurement, the textile
electrodes were prepared in the size of 1.5 cm 3 cm. Then, they were placed on
both wrists and on one right ankle replacing the conventional AgCl electrodes.
Generally, the signals of both AgCl and Cu-sputtered textile electrodes
represented similar wave patterns as shown in Figure 6. But it was found that the
Cu-sputtered electrodes showed wider range of voltage than the AgCl electrodes
did. This is because of wider contact area of the textile electrodes than the commercially available AgCl electrodes, which were 1 cm in diameter.
On the other hand, the other types of electrodes were constructed by embroidering stainless steel yarns. The electrodes were attached into three positions of
right and left chests and left abdomen of mens sleeveless shirts. By conducting
wear test, the R-peak detection rates were obtained from ECG signals (Figure 7).
The reason why the embroidered electrodes had lower accuracy than the
Cu-sputtered textile electrodes is because of the lower conductance of stainless
steel yarn and much smaller contact area.
3.3. Durability
Durability is another important requirement because clothing is supposed to
withstand harsh conditions during launderings and everyday use. All electronic

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FIGURE 6 ECG signals of AgCl electrode and Cu-sputtered fabric. Note. From
Exploring Possibilities of ECG Electrodes for Bio-Monitoring Smartwear With Cu
Sputtered Fabrics, by S. Jang, J. Cho, K. Jeong, & G. Cho, 2007, Proceedings of HCI
International 2007, Fig. 6, p. 1136. Copyright 2007 by Springer. Reprinted with kind
permission of Springer Science and Business Media.

devices should be protected by a soft cushion or detached before laundering.


When the electronics are to be integrated in the textile form, their durability needs
to be tested.
There are some articles dealing with the durability issues in developing smart
clothing or electronic textiles (Cho, Moon, et al., 2007; Park & Jayaraman, 2001).
The Georgia Tech Wearable Mother board, the shirt developed by Park and
Jayaraman in 2001 for combat soldiers to help ensure their personal life, represents a wearlife of 120 combat days and its ability to withstand repeated flexure,
abrasion, and laundering.
To prove the durability of the fabrics as an alternative transmission lines, Cho,
Moon, et al. (2007) developed textile-based transmission lines by applying polyurethane sealing on conductive fabrics. To prove their durability, the effect of
repeated launderings was investigated on the electrical resistance of the polyurethane sealed metal-plated fabrics. The polyurethane sealed fabrics maintained
excellent electrical durability even after being laundered 10 times. Also, when we

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FIGURE 7

ECG signals of ECG shirt embroidered with stainless steel yarns.

FIGURE 8 Comparison of output signals of textile-based cable. Note. From Design


and Evaluation of Textile-Based Signal Transmission Lines and Keypads for Smart
Wear, by J. Cho, J. Moon, M. Sung, K. Jeong, & G. Cho, 2007, Proceedings of HCI
International 2007, Fig. 2, p. 1082. Copyright 2007 by Springer. Reprinted with kind
permission of Springer Science and Business Media.

operated an MP3 player using the laundered fabric by replacing the middle parts
of earphone lines, the earphones successfully worked and no sound quality difference was subjectively perceived. Therefore, the metal plated fabric with PU
double sealing exhibited almost the same performance as the conventional Cu
earphone lines (Figure 8).

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3.4. Safety
Safety is the state of being safe, the condition of being protected against physical,
social, psychological, or other types of harm. The mechanical feature of the smart
clothing may be accrued as a result of functional error. Providing safe smart clothing
requires consideration of physical forms, electromagnetic waves, electric current,
and so on.
To improve the safety performance of conductive narrow fabric for signal
transmission, Y. Yang, Sung, Cho, Jeong, and Cho (2007) investigated whether
Teflon-coating on the metal yarns, used for constructing conductive narrow
fabric, provide better safety function. After external physical force (bending/
abrasion) has been applied to the fabric, their functionalities with respect to
electric insulation and electrical interference between neighboring lines were
compared. The result verified that the narrow fabric utilizing Teflon-coated signal
transmission lines had superior safety performance in maintaining electric insulation and preventing electrical interference (Figure 9).
For the mass-production of smart clothing, the safety functions of smart
clothing should be studied further from more diverse aspects. Through that
process, a standard index needs to be established for both manufacturers and
consumers.

(a) Without Teflon coating (before abrasion) (b) With Teflon coating (before abrasion)

(c) Without Teflon coating (after abrasion)

(d)With Teflon coating (after abrasion)

FIGURE 9 Conductive narrow fabrics for signal transmission lines before and after
abrasion.

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3.5. Comfort
Generally, comfort can be defined as freedom from discomfort and pain. It is a
neutral state. According to Hatch (1993), comfort can be divided into three
aspects: thermophysiological comfort, sensorial or neurophysiological comfort,
and body-movement comfort.
Comfort relates to the way in which clothing affects heat, moisture, and air
transfer as well as the way in which the body interacts with clothing (Barfield
et al., 2001). This aspect of comfort is referred to as thermophysiological comfort. In addition, comfort is related to the issue of how consumers actually feel
when clothing comes into contact with the skin. This is referred to as sensorial or
neurophysiological comfort. Finally, comfort is related to the ability of clothing
to allow freedom of movement, reduced burden, and body shaping as required.
This is called body-movement comfort.
So far, comfort assessment has been carried out for wearable devices such as
helmet or arm-worn devices (Robinette & Whitestone, 1994; Stein, Ferrero,
Hetfield, Quinn, & Krichever, 1998; Whitestone, 1993 ). However, comfort assessment has been conducted using limited dimensional scales without considering
various aspects.
Cho, Jang, et al. (2007) developed ECG monitoring shirts varying in the
spandex content (0%, 5%, and 7%). Subjective evaluation for ECG shirts was
conducted through wear test, using questionnaires including tightness, irritation, and easiness of movement. As the result, the shirt with 5% spandex was
preferred.
Most of the researches on evaluation of smart clothing have been carried out by
Knight and Barber. They developed the comfort rating scales (CRSs) specifically
to assess the comfort of wearable technology (Knight & Barber, 2005; Knight,
Baber, Schwirtz, & Bristow, 2002). The CRSs attempt to gain a comprehensive
assessment of the comfort status of the wearer by measuring comfort across six
dimensions. These dimensions are (a) emotion (concerns about appearance and
relaxation), (b) attachment (comfort related to non-harmful physical sensation of
the device on the body), (c) harm (physical sensation conveying pain), (d) perceived change (nonharmful indirect physical sensation making the wearer feel
different overall with perceptions such as being awkward or uncoordinated), (e)
movement (awareness of modification to posture or movement due to direct
impedance of inhibition by the device), and (f) anxiety (worries as to the safety of
wearing the device and concerns as to whether the wearer is using it correctly or
it is working appropriately).
The CRSs run on a 20-point scale and require that the users rate their level of
agreement from low to high to statements associated with each of the dimensions. The CRS have been used to assess the comfort of a number of wearable
technologies and in different situations (Bodine & Gemperle, 2003; Knight &
Baber, 2005; Knight, Baber, Schwirtz, & Bristow, 2002).
When we compare CRSs with the conventional criteria for clothing comfort,
which includes thermophysiological, sensorial, and body-movement comfort,
CRSs deals with psychological or emotional aspects in smart clothing as importantly as it deals with the physical and physiological aspects.

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Gemperle, Kasabach, Stivoric, Bauer, and Martin (1998) suggested design


guidelines that are intended to communicate the considerations and principles
necessary for the design of wearable products. The suggested guidelines are placement, form language, human movement, proxemics (human perception of space),
size variation, attachment, containment, weight, accessibility, sensory interaction,
thermal, aesthetics, and long-term use. The design guidelines communicate a
means of considering all the issues involved when creating wearable forms.
Among the guidelines, the proxemics issue provides a new viewpoint in
designing smart clothing. Proxemics, referring to the understanding of these
layers of perception around the body, is related to the fact that the brain perceives
an aura around the body. It should be considered to determine the distance of a
wearable object from the users body so that the object should stay within the
wearers intimate space just like a part of the body. The intimate space is known
as between 0 and 5 in. off the body (Gemperle et al., 1998).
3.6. Fashion
Because clothing is a fashion item, aesthetics should be combined with other
human aspects for the balance of functional and aesthetic considerations. Designing smart clothing crosses the boundaries of the specialists knowledge. Some
researchers who come from clothing and textile design fields have asserted the
importance of multidisciplinary collaboration, and the processes of developing
smart clothing products have been suggested (Ariyatum & Holland, 2003;
Baurley, 2005; McCann, Hurford, & Martin, 2005).
Fashion design and product design are established fields of their own, and it is
difficult to communicate or adopt the others work methods. Ariyatum and
Holland (2003) asserted that a new product design model must be formulated
based on a smart clothing context. The key issues presented by them are that the
conventional structure of new product design models would fail to demonstrate
the different work methods of the two sectors, electronics and fashion goods.
Thus a new product design model is needed to enhance understanding about the
work and communication within the collaborative teams.
Baurley (2005) suggested a design methodology for interaction design of smart
clothing. The methodology consists of a conceptual framework, user study, and
design building. The framework is based on observations and research on how
people use, interact with and experience the conventional clothing. User studies
are based on user groups and they are again fed back into the framework.
McCann, Hurford, and Martin (2005) proposed the Critical Path, a design
tool, to guide the design research and development process in the application of
smart technologies. A design tool was developed to support innovative decision
making in the sourcing and selecting of appropriate materials, technologies, and
construction methods. The process includes identification of end-user needs, fiber
and fabric development and textile assemblies, and garment development. To
maintain the balance of appearance and function, designers require guidance in
their selection and application of technical textiles, style, cutting, sewing, and
finishing at every stage in the design research and development process.

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4. APPLICATION OF SMART CLOTHING


Smart clothing may be used in various fields because its services reach information, assistance, communication, aesthetics, and so on. Some products have
already been introduced on the markets, but generally it can be stated that the
development is in its starting phase, but its potential is enormous. However, none
of the smart clothing applications is considered a full integration of high technology and fashion design because of the imbalanced contribution from electronics
and fashion industries. This section illustrates the current situation of product
development in the smart clothing area and explains the technology involved in
integrating electronics into fashion.
4.1. Bio-Monitoring
Truly instrumented garments capable of recording physiological, neurological
and body kinematic parameters are crucial for healthcare and health provision
(De Rossi., Lorussi, Mazzoldi, Orsini, & Scilingo, 2000). As Lymberis and Olsson
(2003) stated, they can provide physicians with data to detect and manage health
risks, diagnose at an early stage, recommend treatment, and make professional
decisions based on objective information.
Recently, health care is a key market for the textile industry. In 2000, more than
1.5 million tons of medical and hygienic textile materials, with a value of $5.4 billion,
were consumed worldwide. It is estimated that this figure will increase in volume
by 4.5% per annum, so that by 2010 it will have reached 2.4 million tons, with a
market value of $8.2 billion (David Rigby Associate, 2002). We focus on analysis
of what kind of applications would be potentially beneficial to the users and what
enabling technology is used for this vision to be realized.
Body Signal
Medical monitors have benefited from technological advances in the fields of
wireless communication, processing, and power sources. These advances have
made possible the miniaturization and prolonged operating times of medical
monitors as well as their global integration into telemedical systems. Medical
monitors allow patients to have real-time feedback about medical conditions
using such data such as respiration, ECG, Galvanic skin response (GSR), skin pH,
temperature, and blood oximetry while going about their normal daily activities.
They also give data to athletes during training and healthy users about their physiological state (Raskovic, Martin, & Jovanov, 2003).
The SmartShirt wearable motherboard, which was developed by Park and
Jayaraman in 2001, can be used in persons who have known disorders. It permits
a constant monitoring of their physical condition by medical personnel in a noninvasive manner. The goal of the SmartShirt System is to significantly minimize
casualties for first responders by providing knowledge of their health status to
on-scene commanders in a number of emergency situations. The SmartShirt can
monitor a wide variety of vital signs such as heart rate, ECG, respiration, and

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blood pressure. The initial system consists of three lead ECG, heart rate monitor,
and respiration monitor. The SmartShirt uses electro-optical fibers embedded in
the fabric to collect biomedical information. The information is sent to a transmitter at the base of the shirt where it is stored on a memory chip or sent to a doctor,
coach, or personal server via a wireless network like Bluetooth, RF, wLAN, or cellular. This item is equipped with basic components for a smart clothing system,
but only a limited textile technology is used on communication.
The VivoMetricss flagship product, Lifeshirt, is an ambulatory monitoring
vest that monitors respiration by means of thoracic and abdominal inductive
plethysmography bands sewn into a Lycra vest. In this case, the shirts input
interface system is functionalized with carbon-loaded rubber piezoresistive fabric
sensors, used to monitor respiration trace (Grossman, 2003). Lifeshirt also
includes an ECG sensor, which is usually used for medical purposes. Once the
data are gathered, they are stored in Lifeshirt recorder. This data management
system is incorporated into a customized Handspring worn on the patients belt
or carried in a pocket. After gathering the data, the patient will upload the data
via the Internet to the VivoMetrics secure data center. Then the data are reviewed
by technicians and physicians. Lifeshirt is a commercial product that collects, analyzes, and reports on the individuals pulmonary, cardiac, and posture data
(Solaz et al., 2006).
Taccini, Loriga, Dittmar, Paradiso, and Milior (2004) presented the Wealthy
system, that integrates several function modules such as sensing, conditioning,
preprocessing, data transmission, and remote monitoring. The Wealthy system
also contains a prototype of a respiration sensing device that uses impedance to
derive the respiration of the wearer. The main respiration and movement activity
come from piezoresistive sensors, which are used in the input interface, sampled
at 16 Hz. Signals from them are transmitted with no local processing. The coated
Lycra fabric was used to detect respiration signals. Strain fabric sensors based on
piezoresistive yarns and the fabric electrodes realized with metal-based yarns
enable the realization of wearable and wireless instrumented garments capable of
recording physiological signals. The Wealthy system is to be used during the routine activity and to be worn in place of a classical garment without any discomfort
for the user. The most innovative character of this system consists in the use of
functionalized materials in the form of fibers and yarns which can be knitted or
woven into a multifunctional sensing fabric (Taccini et al., 2004).
Sensate Liner was designed by Lind and Eisler (1997) to implement a manageable cost-effective systems approach to monitoring the medical condition of personnel by way of an instrumented uniform. The Sensate Liner textile consists of a
mesh of electrically and optically conductive fibers integrated into the normal structure (woven or knitted) of fibers and yarns selected for comfort and durability. The
Sensate Liner consists of a form-fitting two-piece jumpsuits, which contain and
interconnect sensing elements and device to an electronics pack containing a
processor and a transmitter. The structure contains regularly spaced yarns acting
as sensing elements and precisely positioned yarns for carrying signals from the
sensors to the Personal Status Monitor. The fabric substrates are also suitable for
incorporation of optical sensors, reflective or camouflage materials, communications networking, or fiberoptic cable interfaces.

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Ottenbacher, Romer, Kunze, Grosmann, and Stork (2004) developed a


Bluetooth-based ECG shirt. In this shirt, ECG electrodes are used for the input
interface system. Copper wires and Bluetooth are used for communication. In
particular, an edging developed by the TITV was employed. It consists of eight
isolated copper wires, protection mesh, and a border for sewing it to the fabric.
The edging is very thin and flexible. Two of the available wires are used for the
signal while the others are used as shielding. To realize a washable system, the
electronic hardware was designed to be removable from the T-shirt. To provide
an easy way to connect the hardware to the shirt electrically and mechanically,
push buttons are used. Contact problems are avoided by using two push buttons
for each signal. There are several advantages using integrated textile electrodes:
The electrodes can be always in the right place, and there are no skin irritations,
even over a long-term use.
As mentioned earlier, Van Langenhove and Hertleer (2004) developed a Respibelt
to measure the respiration rate. It is a fabric sensor made of a stainless steel yarn,
knitted in a Lycra belt, providing an adjustable stretch. Using piezoelectric
sensors, Respibelt can sensor the wearers respiration. By placing the Respibelt
around the abdomen or thorax, circumference and length changes of the Respibelt,
caused by breathing, result both in an inductance and resistance variation.
The Smart Wear Research Center at Yonsei University has developed a jogging
wear to measure ECG. This prototype is to monitor personal health conditions
while jogging by sensing heart rates and temperature. As shown in Figure 10, it is
comprised of three textile-based ECG sensors, a temperature sensor, textile-based
transmission lines, ECG electrode module, and the main sensor module. The ECG
sensors are made of metal plated conductive fabrics, replacing the conventional
adhesive type of electrodes. Also, transmission lines are textile based, which
make it washable.

FIGURE 10

Diagram of a jogging wear.

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Body Movement
Motions, motion patterns, gestures, and postures are basic elements characterizing human activity. Tracking of body motions, gestures and positions provide
information useful for activity classification, for denoising of other biosignals, and
for interpretation of the physiological status (Trster, 2004). Accelerometers,
gyroscopes, magnetometers, piezoelectric sensors and global positioning system
(GPS) are often combined to detect motion.
Many studies have been conducted on the methods of measuring human
motions in various areas, making use of such equipment as wearable computers
or smart clothing. Most of them have utilized motion capture systems and
acceleration sensors. However, this technique causes inconveniences to users and
requires many devices such as cameras and image analyzing systems. Thus,
textile-based motion sensors can be an alternative to motion capture systems
(Sung, Cho, Jeong, & Cho, 2007).
Sung, DeVaul, Jimenez, Gips, and Pentland (2004) presented a wearable realtime shiver monitor based on the MIThril Live Net system, a flexible distributed
mobile platform that can be used for a variety of proactive health care applications. In this exploratory study, they have demonstrated that shivering can be
accurately determined from continuous accelerometer sensing. They attempted to
develop a real-time wearable monitor that is capable of accurately classifying
shivering motions through simple accelerometer sensing and statistical machine
learning techniques. Motion sensing is accomplished via two embedded microcontroller-based sensors based on the Analog Devices ADXL202 accelerometer
part. As moderate cold exposure occurs, this shivering can become intense,
uncontrollable. This exploratory research anticipates the emergence of real-time
health monitoring systems capable of classifying the cold exposure of soldiers in
harsh cold environments with noninvasive sensing and minimal embedded
computational resources.
Motoi et al. (2006) developed a wearable system for monitoring static and
dynamic posture together with the walking speed, reporting its usefulness in the
rehabilitation field. Using the new system, a quantitative assessment of the patients
motion can be carried out during rehabilitation programs. In the dynamic posture, the angle change is obtained by integrating the gyro-sensor signal. By using
a CCD camera and capture board, the movements of four markers attached on the
subjects are simultaneously recorded with a frame speed of 30 frames per second.
Posture changes of participants are also recorded using a digital video camera.
Despite the precise evaluation, this system still needs to be flexible by applying
the electronic textile technology.
Inductive fiber-meshed transducers were developed by Wijesiriwardana
(2006), which can be integrated into garments for angular measurements. The
inductive fiber-meshed transducers can be integrated into sleeves of the garments
and they can be integrated at the tights and the calf of leggings. Knitting technology is used for its construction and metallic as the materials. A single coil based
on variation in self-inductance or electromagnetic induction is used for the measurement of angular displacement. The input interface incorporating knitting
technology provides more body movement comfort than any other materials.

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Gibbs and Asada (2004) created wearable conductive fiber sensors for measuring
joint movements that provide a technique that uses conductive fibers as part of a
wearable sensor for continuous monitoring of joint movements. To measure such
joint movements, an array of 11 conductive yarns across the knee joint is used for
the input interface. Each yarn is separated by a distance of 5 mm, and each has an
unstretched length of 55 cm. The threads are silver-plated nylon 66 yarns produced by embedding tiny particles of electrically conductive carbon powder into
the surface of a nylon fiber.
A sensing and monitoring system was developed by Michahelles and Schiele
(2005) for professional skiers. The system based on wearable sensors and video
recording can reveal important features describing the athletes motions, helping
trainers to identify the skiers strengths and weaknesses. Using force-sensing
resistors, they placed sensors on 3 points on the foot in the shape of a triangle and
averaged the pressure to obtain a center of pressure. When the skiers foot applies
pressure, semiconductive ink in the sensor produces a shunting of the electrodes,
which we measure as a resistance value. The system can provide autonomous
teaching of snowboarding, skateboarding, and cycling.
Taelman et al. (2006) suggested contactless EMG sensors for continuous monitoring of muscle activity to prevent musculoskeletal disorders. The sensors are
developed to construct a wearable textile with integrated EMG sensors capable of
measuring muscle activity in an unobtrusive way. The developed sensors do not
require electrical contact with the skin because they detect an electric displacement current by means of a capacitive coupling to the body. For the integration of
the sensors, embroidery with conductive and insulated threads is used. The
avoidance of direct skin contact gives the opportunity to wear the vest above
other clothing. The design of a contactless sensor developed by the integration of
electronics in textile provides the user with comfortable clothing.
Rocha and Correia (2006) designed a wearable sensor network for body
kinematics monitoring. The sensor measures the body kinematics such as posture,
gesture, heart rate, respiratory rate, and temperature of a patient during treatment. In this case, sensing modules composed of 3-axis accelerometers, 3-axis
magnetometers, and interface electronics are integrated in a swimming suit and
connected to a microcontroller by a serial interface. The suit integrates the floats
and electronic components such as sensors and assures the monitoring of the
patients kinematics.
The main characteristic of the application is the wet environment, which adds
unique development constraints. Therefore, customized sensing microsystems
inserted in waterproof pockets can be integrated in the textiles. The body
kinematics monitor microsystem is a sensor network composed of five modules.
Both the gravitational force and the earth magnetic field are used to detect the
posture of the main body articulations.
Garments that can gather body context information were developed by
Dunne, Brady, Smyth, and Diamond (2005). The key component is a pressuresensitive PPy-coated foam to gather the body context information. Instead of
monitoring changes in limb position or body length or circumference measures,
information is gathered from the preexisting dynamic physical forces that operate
between the wearers body and a garment during physiological functions or

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movements. The test configuration uses foam to monitor breathing, shoulder


movement, neck movement, and constant pressure on the shoulder blades. The
sensor, which is made from standard polyurethane foam with a conductive PPy
coating, retains all of the physical properties of regular polyurethane foam, and
the sensor is washable (Brady et al., 2005). Of importance, this sensor technology
can be readily embedded into a normal garment, retaining the structural and
tactile properties of a textile structure. Based on this preliminary data, the PPycoated conductive foam is promising as a basic sensing technology for detecting
body movements, physiological functions, and body states from body-garment
interactions.
It has been widely accepted that work-related upper limb musculoskeletal
disorders among computer users can be prevented by posture modification (Gerr
et al., 2005) or ergonomic interventions like specific hardware (e.g., adjustable
chairs) or other workstation modifications (Lindegrd, Karlberga, Tornqvistb,
Toomingasb, & Hagberga, 2005). However, there are very few reliable, objective,
and accurate methods of continually monitoring posture in the work environment to evaluate the success of these interventions.
In the work of Dunne, Walsh, Smyth, and Caulfield (2006) a wearable plastic
optical fiber (POF) sensor are used for monitoring seated spinal posture. A fiberoptic bend sensor consists of a light source, a light sensor, and a length of POF.
The POF is abraded along the one side, which allow light to escape from the
abraded area. The amount of light sensed is determined by the amount of bend in
the fiber. The sensor response is reliable, accurate, repeatable, and free from drift.
The POF sensor is inexpensive and well suited to wearable applications, because
of its small size, flexibility, and easily customized length.
4.2. Entertainment
Smart clothing is a new and growing trend in the worldwide clothing market. A
number of sportswear companies are successfully selling their products by adding more values such as information and entertainment that are becoming new
value items in clothing. Now, smart clothing appealing to entertainment is getting
attention by interacting with emotional effect.
Post et al. (2000), the researchers of MIT Media Lab, have built Musical Jackets
with a touch-sensitive MIDI keyboard embroidered directly into the fabric using
conductive thread. The thread, embroidered into a standard 4 3 character keypad below the right shoulder, contains stainless steel filaments, making it conductive. The capacitive loading of the body is detected when the thread is
touched; the keypad is polyphonic, thus several keys can be hit simultaneously.
Sound is generated by a single-chip General MIDI wavetable synthesizer, and
sequences are generated in a microcontroller. The jacket is entirely battery operated, with powered speakers in the pockets. Among the smart clothing components equipped in this jacket, textile technology has been applied to the input
interface.
The Smart Wear Research Center has presented an MP3 player dress where
textile-based transmission lines and textile-based switches are incorporated.

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Switches are freely placed on the font bodice, representing different symbols for
MP3 player operation.
The Smart Wear Research Center has also presented a photonic dress which
illuminates on the fabric surface when combined with a LED as a light source. The
basic type of photonic dress is based on the POF fabrication technique and the
etching technique on the POF surface. To make the POF fabric evenly illuminate,
the etching effect should be uniform and the amount of etching should be controlled which is also related to fabric durability.
The color-responding photonic dress can change its color according to the
environment. When a certain color is sensed by the color sensor, the color is
characterized by a specific value. After a corresponding color is matched by using
three colors of LEDs, and the light is emitted through the POF fabric.
The sound-responding photonic dress (Figure 11) can change its color by the
environment sound. Because a microcondensor is controlled to sense a low
frequency of sound, the corresponding frequency (e.g., drum sound) changes
resistance and capacitor. By connecting this sound-sensing module to an LED, the
POF fabrics can be illuminated like an equalizer. The components of the soundresponding photonic jacket are POF fabrics with an LED, an LED control module,
and rechargeable batteries.
Vilkas and Kukkia, designed by Berzowska and Marcelo (2005), are expressive
and behavioral kinetic sculptures. Vilkas is a dress with a kinetic hemline on the
right side that rises over a 30-sec interval to reveal the knee and lower thigh. It is
constructed of heavy handmade felt that contracts through the use of handstitched Nitinol wires. Nitinol, an SMA made of nickel and titanium, has the
ability to indefinitely remember its geometry if once treated to acquire a specific
shape. Using this characteristic, the Nitinol can be used to create a wrinkling
effect.

FIGURE 11

Sound-responding photonic jacket.

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The Kukkia dress is decorated with three animated flowers that open and close
over a 15-sec interval. When heated, the wire shrinks and pulls the petals
together, closing the flower. As it cools down, the rigidity of the felt counteracts
the shape of the wire, allowing the flower to open. This dress is operated by a
microcontroller triggering drivers that send power to the Nitinol. Also, it uses a
small rechargeable lithium polymer cells that can power the dress for 2 hr. As the
output interface, the shape memory embedded fabric is used.
Touch is a powerful conduit for emotional connectedness. Haptic research
includes the design of interactions employing devices through which virtual
physical models can be felt, just as we display to our visual sense with graphical
displays. Using haptic communication, separated individuals interact with one
another through a pair of haptic displays, which are themselves connected via a
computer running coupled virtual physical models (Smith, 2007).
The Sensor Sleeve, which was designed by Randell et al. (2005), is a cloth that
enables emotional messages to be exchanged remotely between people who are
relationally close, by conveying a sense of touch and presence. The sleeve detects
embrace and stroke actions centered on the arm. A smart textile system comprising
of textile circuits with gesture and touch sensors, together with microcontroller
and Bluetooth devices, is integrated into the sleeve of a garment.
Cutecircuits Hug Shirt (http://www.cutecircuit.com) is a shirt that makes
people send hugs over distance, using a wearable Bluetooth for a mobile phone.
It has detachable pads containing sensors that sense touch pressure and heartbeat. The actuators reproduce the sensation of touch and warmth. When touching
the red areas on the shirt, the mobile phone receives the sensors data via
Bluetooth and then delivers it to the other person. The Hug Shirt is built using
textile pad type of interfaces, wireless communication, integrated circuit, and
rechargeable batteries. The military sees the usefulness in the Hug Shirt by allowing their soldiers to exchange their loved ones far away at home. After nominated
as one of the 2006 innovations of the year by Time magazine, the Hug Shirt is
being prepared to enter the market.
Dunne (2004) designed massage shirts to use vibrotactility for a simple application
that is required for communication or information display. During testing of the vibrotactile shoulder pad display, a common subject response to the tactile stimulus is that
the stimulus felt relaxing or comforting or soothing. Thus it is hypothesized that
a massage function, based on the use of the same vibrating motors used in the shoulder pad, would be an attractive functionality. To achieve the vibrating massage, each
shirt contained six to eight flat vibrating motors powered by one 9-volt battery.
Communication-Wear designed by the Sharon Baurleys research team is a
wearable technology clothing concept that augments the mobile phone by
enabling expressive messages to be exchanged remotely, by conveying a sense of
touch and presence (Baurley, Brock, Geelhoed, & Moore, 2007). Actuation of hug
message takes place via generation of a warming sensation using heatable textiles, symbolizing the warming sensation felt when touched by another person.
When a hug or embrace gesture is sent, the heat pads in the back of the jacket
heat up. Communication of touch messages takes place between garments via
Bluetooth. Physiological arousal, as detected by the GSR sensors, is relayed to the
partner by light being emitted from the fiber-optic section.

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This garment contains a circuit board where a PIC microcontroller for processing
is mounted. The jacket also has a 7.2-volt rechargeable battery. This CommunicationWear also contains input interface like touch sensing method or textile-based GSR
sensor, output interface (heat-emitting fabric, light emitting fabric), and communication interface such as Bluetooth, integrated circuit, and battery.
As affective computing grown out of wearable computing was suggested by
Picard and Healey (1997), smart clothing has started to become concerned with
clothing that has the skills to recognize physical and psychological patterns and
translate these into emotions. Expressions of emotion also include changes in the
autonomic nervous system activity such as accelerated heart rate or increasing
skin conductivity (Baurley, 2005). This is potentially very useful in engineering
smart clothing equipped with a series of function sensing of the wearers physiological signals, analyzing the collected data, and actuating by providing the wearers
with appropriate responses.
The Scentsory Design (http://www.smartsecondskin.com) project chooses
scent as a tool to improve the mental and physical well-being. The designs speak
for the wearer through the sense of smell, by reading and interpreting emotions,
enabling the wearer to express their feelings through the delivery of color and
scent emitted from clothing. Thus, the item produces a very personal scent, delivering sensations on demand. This kind of smart clothing can alleviate mental and
physical health problems through the delivery of odorant benefit chemicals in
controlled ways responding to personal needs.
Marrin (1999) developed the Conductors Jacket, one of the physiological
sensing systems that are robust to motion artifacts. This highly expressive wearable system is associated with patterns of muscle tension and breathing with
expressive gestures that the conductor uses to shape the music. Seven EMG and
one respiration sensors for the input interface are included. The EMG sensors are
attached with custom-fit elastics sewn into the shirt, so that they remain snug
without strong adhesives and yet do not move as the arms are moved. This
wearable system was designed first to measure how professional and student
conductors naturally communicate expressive information to an orchestra. After
analyzing real conducting data from six participants, Marrin found thirty significant expressive features related to muscle tension changes.
4.3. Information
In recent years we have seen a tremendous rise of portable devices. These
products are designed to be carried around by the body. The demand for smart
clothing will grow as applications for networking computer-based devices on the
body are increased. Potential applications go beyond communications, emails,
and organizing personal data. These devices have their own proper input and
output devices. To provide the clothing with information functions, input and
output interfaces should be designed for better efficiency.
The Communication Jacket developed by Fraunhofer research team integrated
a mobile phone into clothing. The I/O modules have been interconnected by
embroidered lines and metal snaps make it easy to detach a display module for

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611

washing. Although input device is made of textile material, output device is still
packaged in a hard case, making it difficult to completely integrated.
Randell (2001) from the Bristol Wearable Computing project team developed a
CyberJacket, which provides a platform for developing and testing wearable computing applications. The CyberJacket has a network computer along with a number
of context sensing devices including a GPS receiver, ultrasonic indoor location sensors, an electronic compass, and accelerometers. The user interface includes speech
recognition and audio playback, and displays can be handheld, headmounted, or
worn on the sleeve. When the CyberJacket detects that the user is approaching a
certain place, a short audio message is played through an earpiece. If the user reacts
by stopping, a page of relevant information appears on the sleeve. The devices in
the CyberJacket are still in the early stage of integration into clothing.
5. REAPPRAISAL OF SMART CLOTHING
We have reviewed technology developments and applications of smart clothing.
Based on the current status of smart clothing, this section suggests the direction of
the development of smart clothing and future work.
5.1. Future Development of Smart Clothing
With the growing interest on smart clothing from industry as well as academia, it
is anticipated that the area of smart clothing will continue to expand. Growth is
expected to occur not only in the applications where certain functions or specialized activities are required but also in everyday clothing in which the wearers
emotions could be recognized and expressed.
Figure 12 summarizes the components of smart clothing technology, the services
that smart clothing can provide, and examples of the applications. Individual

FIGURE 12 Smart clothing technology, service, and applications.

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components of a smart clothing system, that is, interface, communication, data


management, energy management, and integrated circuits, are combined and
work together to form services such as information, communication, assistance,
aesthetic, affective, and so on. An example of information application is a jacket
with a GPS, providing positioning and location data. Communication applications include a jacket in which a mobile phone is integrated. An example of affective smart clothing is the Sensor Sleeve that detects affective gestures and enables
emotional messages to be exchanged remotely between people.
As illustrated in Figure 12, the area of smart clothing is likely to expand from a
function-oriented system to a system that focuses not only on the function but
also affective states of the wearer. We are living in an era where human beings
search for social interaction and relationships and look for ways to communicate
with others and express our emotions. In the future, smart clothing may sense the
wearers feelings and respond to the emotions by changing its shape, color, scent,
and so forth.
Figure 13 shows an example of how affective smart clothing works. It illustrates sensory information monitoring mechanism where the wearers emotions
are read and interpreted. The wearers physiological signals such as heart rate or
skin temperature are sensed, the collected data are analyzed, and appropriate
responses are provided through actuators. Future smart clothing systems would
detect emotional information based on the wearers physical state and respond to
the wearers emotions.
Those already-marketed smart clothing products discussed in the previous
chapter have focused mostly on embedding a single service or function into
clothing. It is expected that research on smart clothing systems will expand out to
integrate various services or functions into the system to produce multifunctional
smart clothing systems. To achieve smart clothing that is genuinely intelligent
and interactive with human beings, development of novel materials and technology
is essential.

FIGURE 13 Sensory information monitoring mechanism.

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5.2. Future Work


In smart technology for textiles and clothing, continued development is needed
for integration technology that combines electronics into each component of
smart clothing. Its trend is expected to proceed from block-based technology to
embedded technology, and accordingly the level of technology will move from
textile converting to fiber level. Therefore, novel fiber materials such as ICPs and
new technologies such as nanotechnology and electrospinning will play an
important role in the next-generation material/technology.
To implement the functions of each component in smart clothing, interconnection technology for bridging needs to be developed as well. Conductive textiles in
each component are currently at different technology levels, for example, the
level of technology in displays exceeds that in batteries. Thus, it is necessary to set
up standardized specifications to interconnect each component more effectively,
considering interchangeability, durability, and usability.
Smart clothing is a fashion item that needs to satisfy the users in emotion as
much as in function. Therefore, user-oriented technology development that
reflects consumers latent needs is essential, in addition to integration and interconnection technologies.
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