Integrating intelligent textiles into clothing is an exciting field as you can see by checking out our blog.
Over the holiday season I read a great book titled: ‘Intelligent textiles and clothing’ edited by Dr Heikki Mattila, Professor of Textile and Clothing Technology at Tampere University of Technology, Finland.
This is one of the most comprehensive and voluminous (over 500 pages) work about my preferred topic.
‘Intelligent textiles and clothing’ is an absolute must read for anyone interested in Smart Textiles. It covers a wide diversity of topics contributed from experts in the fields of electronics, textile, chemistry, physics and design.
The book is organized in four main sections:
Section one is dedicated to phase change materials (PCM). The topics are: Introduction to phase change materials, Intelligent textiles with PCMs and the use of phase change materials in outdoor clothing..
A good example of the possibility of PCM in clothing is the SKORPOIN Dress of Di Mainstone.
Section two explores the emerging field of shape memory materials (SMM) in some details with topics like: Introduction to shape memory materials, Development of shape memory alloy fabrics for composite structures, study of shape memory polymer films for breathable textiles and Engineering textile and clothing aesthetics using shape changing materials.
Section three deals with chromic materials (colour change) and conductive material: Introduction to chromic materials, Solar textiles: production and distribution of electricity coming from solar radiation, Introduction to conductive materials, Electric conductivity, Metal conductors, Ionic conductors, Application technologies for conducting fibre materials, Future trends in conductive materials and Multipurpose textile based sensors.
The final part of the book looks at current and potential applications and includes chapters of: WearCare – Usability of intelligent materials in work wear, Intelligent textiles for medical and monitoring applications, context aware textiles for wearable health assistants, Intelligent garments in prehospital emergency care, Intelligent textiles for children, Wearable biofeedback systems and applications for woven electrical fabrics
‘Intelligent textiles and clothing’ draws on knowledge from a number of disciplines, including electronics, textiles, telecommunications, biotechnology and medicine. The chapters represent an outstanding panel of international experts bringing a wealth of information together. This is an essential guide for all electrical, textile and biomedical engineers as well as academics and fashion designers.
