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Fibers
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Electronically Active Textiles
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Electronically Active Textiles

A special issue of Fibers (ISSN 2079-6439).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2018) | Viewed by 49549

Printed Edition Available!
A printed edition of this Special Issue is available here.

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Tilak Dias

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Advanced Textiles Research Group, Nottingham School of Art and Design, Nottingham Trent University, Bonington Building, Dryden Street, Nottingham NG1 4GG, UK
Interests: electronically functional yarn (E-yarn); advanced 3D knitting technology; active compression garments; fabric antennae; electronic textiles
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Since its invention, textile material has gone through many evolutions; initially, the focus was on enhancing aesthetic properties, such as colour, handle and comfort, of a textile, and, much later, especially during the last century, the focus has been on improving the functionality of a textile. This has led to the development of fabrics capable of stopping a bullet travelling at supersonic speeds, fire retardant fabrics and impact and cut resistant fabrics. All these functionalities have been achieved via chemical processes and advances in polymer science. Textiles are now going through a new evolution of integrating electrical systems and electronic devices.

Textiles are used to clothe our bodies because they are strong, soft, breathable, flexible and conformable. The introduction of electronic components has the potential to compromise some of these highly-desirable characteristics, however, the proper integration would result in introducing, for the first time, intelligence to textile materials.

The purpose of the Special Issue is to report the advances in the integration of electronics into textiles which has provided a platform for developing a range of new novel products in fields, such as healthcare, sports, protection, transport and communication.

Prof. Dr. Tilak Dias
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Fibers is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • e-Textiles
  • electronic textiles
  • advanced functional textiles
  • technical textiles
  • medical textiles
  • fabric antennae
  • light emitting textiles
  • communication textiles

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 3685 KiB  
Article
A Novel Method for Embedding Semiconductor Dies within Textile Yarn to Create Electronic Textiles
by Mohamad-Nour Nashed, Dorothy Anne Hardy, Theodore Hughes-Riley and Tilak Dias
Fibers 2019, 7(2), 12; https://doi.org/10.3390/fib7020012 - 26 Jan 2019
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 9465
Abstract
Electronic yarns (E-yarns) contain electronics fully incorporated into the yarn’s structure prior to textile or garment production. They consist of a conductive core made from a flexible, multi-strand copper wire onto which semiconductor dies or MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) are soldered. The device and [...] Read more.
Electronic yarns (E-yarns) contain electronics fully incorporated into the yarn’s structure prior to textile or garment production. They consist of a conductive core made from a flexible, multi-strand copper wire onto which semiconductor dies or MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) are soldered. The device and solder joints are then encapsulated within a resin micro-pod, which is subsequently surrounded by a textile sheath, which also covers the copper wires. The encapsulation of semiconductor dies or MEMS devices within the resin polymer micro-pod is a critical component of the fabrication process, as the micro-pod protects the dies from mechanical and chemical stresses, and hermetically seals the device, which makes the E-yarn washable. The process of manufacturing E-yarns requires automation to increase production speeds and to ensure consistency of the micro-pod structure. The design and development of a semi-automated encapsulation unit used to fabricate the micro-pods is presented here. The micro-pods were made from a ultra-violet (UV) curable polymer resin. This work details the choice of machinery and methods to create a semi-automated encapsulation system in which incoming dies were detected then covered in resin micro-pods. The system detected incoming 0402 metric package dies with an accuracy of 87 to 98%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electronically Active Textiles)
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13 pages, 3510 KiB  
Article
Effect of Fabric Integration on the Physical and Optical Performance of Electroluminescent Fibers for Lighted Textile Applications
by Alyssa Martin and Adam Fontecchio
Fibers 2018, 6(3), 50; https://doi.org/10.3390/fib6030050 - 17 Jul 2018
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 5963
Abstract
The advent of electroluminescent (EL) fibers, which emit light in response to an applied electric field, has opened the door for fabric-integrated light emission and displays in textiles. However, there have been few technical publications over the past few years about the performance [...] Read more.
The advent of electroluminescent (EL) fibers, which emit light in response to an applied electric field, has opened the door for fabric-integrated light emission and displays in textiles. However, there have been few technical publications over the past few years about the performance of these light emitting fibers inside functional fabrics. Thus, there is limited information on the effect of integration on the physical and optical performance of such devices. In this work, alternating current powder-based EL (ACPEL) fibers were evaluated under a range of operating conditions both inside and outside of a knit matrix to understand how the EL fiber device performance changed inside a functional fabric. The device efficiency, adjustable brightness, and mechanical properties of these fibers are presented. The effects of fabric integration on the light-emitting fibers as well as the supporting knit fabric are discussed as they relate to the practical applications of this technology. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electronically Active Textiles)
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20 pages, 3069 KiB  
Article
Developing Novel Temperature Sensing Garments for Health Monitoring Applications
by Pasindu Lugoda, Theodore Hughes-Riley, Carlos Oliveira, Rob Morris and Tilak Dias
Fibers 2018, 6(3), 46; https://doi.org/10.3390/fib6030046 - 10 Jul 2018
Cited by 30 | Viewed by 7346
Abstract
Embedding temperature sensors within textiles provides an easy method for measuring skin temperature. Skin temperature measurements are an important parameter for a variety of health monitoring applications, where changes in temperature can indicate changes in health. This work uses a temperature sensing yarn, [...] Read more.
Embedding temperature sensors within textiles provides an easy method for measuring skin temperature. Skin temperature measurements are an important parameter for a variety of health monitoring applications, where changes in temperature can indicate changes in health. This work uses a temperature sensing yarn, which was fully characterized in previous work, to create a series of temperature sensing garments: armbands, a glove, and a sock. The purpose of this work was to develop the design rules for creating temperature sensing garments and to understand the limitations of these devices. Detailed design considerations for all three devices are provided. Experiments were conducted to examine the effects of contact pressure on skin contact temperature measurements using textile-based temperature sensors. The temperature sensing sock was used for a short user trial where the foot skin temperature of five healthy volunteers was monitored under different conditions to identify the limitations of recording textile-based foot skin temperature measurements. The fit of the sock significantly affected the measurements. In some cases, wearing a shoe or walking also heavily influenced the temperature measurements. These variations show that textile-based foot skin temperature measurements may be problematic for applications where small temperature differences need to be measured. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electronically Active Textiles)
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12 pages, 3247 KiB  
Article
Engineering a Costume for Performance Using Illuminated LED-Yarns
by Dorothy A. Hardy, Andrea Moneta, Viktorija Sakalyte, Lauren Connolly, Arash Shahidi and Theodore Hughes-Riley
Fibers 2018, 6(2), 35; https://doi.org/10.3390/fib6020035 - 1 Jun 2018
Cited by 33 | Viewed by 8295
Abstract
A goal in the field of wearable technology is to blend electronics with textile fibers to create garments that drape and conform as normal, with additional functionality provided by the embedded electronics. This can be achieved with electronic yarns (E-yarns), in which electronics [...] Read more.
A goal in the field of wearable technology is to blend electronics with textile fibers to create garments that drape and conform as normal, with additional functionality provided by the embedded electronics. This can be achieved with electronic yarns (E-yarns), in which electronics are integrated within the fibers of a yarn. A challenge is incorporating non-stretch E-yarns with stretch fabric that is desirable for some applications. To address this challenge, E-yarns containing LEDs were embroidered onto the stretch fabric of a unitard used as part of a carnival costume. A zig-zag pattern of attachment of E-yarns was developed. Tensile testing showed this pattern was successful in preventing breakages within the E-yarns. Use in performance demonstrated that a dancer was unimpeded by the presence of the E-yarns within the unitard, but also a weakness in the junctions between E-yarns was observed, requiring further design work and reinforcement. The level of visibility of the chosen red LEDs within black E-yarns was low. The project demonstrated the feasibility of using E-yarns with stretch fabrics. This will be particularly useful in applications where E-yarns containing sensors are required in close contact with skin to provide meaningful on-body readings, without impeding the wearer. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electronically Active Textiles)
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Review

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15 pages, 1084 KiB  
Review
A Historical Review of the Development of Electronic Textiles
by Theodore Hughes-Riley, Tilak Dias and Colin Cork
Fibers 2018, 6(2), 34; https://doi.org/10.3390/fib6020034 - 31 May 2018
Cited by 106 | Viewed by 17538
Abstract
Textiles have been at the heart of human technological progress for thousands of years, with textile developments closely tied to key inventions that have shaped societies. The relatively recent invention of electronic textiles is set to push boundaries again and has already opened [...] Read more.
Textiles have been at the heart of human technological progress for thousands of years, with textile developments closely tied to key inventions that have shaped societies. The relatively recent invention of electronic textiles is set to push boundaries again and has already opened up the potential for garments relevant to defense, sports, medicine, and health monitoring. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the key innovative pathways in the development of electronic textiles to date using sources available in the public domain regarding electronic textiles (E-textiles); this includes academic literature, commercialized products, and published patents. The literature shows that electronics can be integrated into textiles, where integration is achieved by either attaching the electronics onto the surface of a textile, electronics are added at the textile manufacturing stage, or electronics are incorporated at the yarn stage. Methods of integration can have an influence on the textiles properties such as the drapability of the textile. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electronically Active Textiles)
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