Smart clothing can contribute to user convenience, safety, and health management by applying technological elements such as sensors and smart fabrics to clothing and analyzing data in real time. Recently, the US government has been garnering attention by jumping into a project to develop smart clothing.
◆Government-led smart clothing project = The US Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Agency (IARPA) is an agency under the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the top US intelligence agency that oversees 15 intelligence agencies including the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and National Security Agency (NSA). It conducts innovative research projects to solve scientific and technological challenges related to national security. IARPA aims to solve major problems faced by US intelligence agencies such as the CIA and FBI by conducting high-risk, high-reward research projects.
Recently, US media reported that IARPA has embarked on a project to develop clothing that can record audio, video, and location information data. The project name is ‘SMART ePANTS.’ The project aims to develop clothing that features the same stretch, bendability, washability, and comfort as regular fabrics by directly integrating electronic systems such as sensors into clothing.
IARPA plans to develop highly stretchable and durable electronic systems made of comfortable and washable fabrics through a three-stage process. The first stage is to develop the world's first flexible and stretchable electronic system integrated with textiles. The second stage is to fully integrate these electronic systems into clothing without rigid components. The final third stage is to achieve the stretchability and washability of regular clothing.
When smart clothing is realized, there will be no need to wear uncomfortable, bulky, and rigid devices, and it will be possible to record information about the surroundings without using hands. People wearing smart clothing will have a wider range of motion and will be able to respond quickly in difficult situations.
IARPA plans to distribute smart clothing to major agencies such as the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, and intelligence agencies, and expects that this will greatly enhance the capabilities of government agencies. “No group has ever invested the time and resources necessary to create integrated electronics that are flexible, bendable, comfortable, and washable,” said Dr. Dawson Cagle, who oversees the project at IARPA. “IARPA is proud to be the first to lead the smart clothing field.”
◆What will future smart clothing look like? = There are various technologies required to create smart clothing, but the core is ‘Active Smart Fabrics’ (AST). According to IARPA, AST is a rapidly growing technology field that refers to fabrics that can flexibly adapt to the external environment or user input and change their functions. Unlike ‘Passive Smart Fabrics’ (PST) that rely on physical structures such as existing Gore-Tex® to function, AST uses energy to power embedded sensors and actuators that sense, store, interpret, and respond to environmental information.
According to data released by MIT’s Lincoln Laboratory and Advanced Functional Textiles (AFFA), which are conducting research and evaluations in the IARPA Smart Clothing Manufacturing Project, the AST approach integrates electronics into textiles, making textiles out of those fibers, or integrating electronics directly into textiles.
To realize this approach, technologies are needed that can transfer many of the functions of existing rigid wearable electronics to AST, such as △conductive polymer wires that can be woven, △energy harvesters powered by the body, △ultra-low-power computers that can be printed on textiles, △microphones that operate like threads, and △batteries that can be folded and operated under various deformations. In other words, innovative new materials and manufacturing technologies are needed for a complete and integrated system that is mechanically deformable and durable across all parts of the power, sensor, computation and data storage, and electrically conductive system components.
The goal of the smart e-pants is to build a sensor system that can be comfortably integrated into basic clothing such as shirts, pants, socks, and underwear. To this end, research is being conducted in three demo tracks: voice recording, video and photo capture, and indoor location information. The research began in August of last year and is scheduled to continue for 42 months.
◆ Smart clothing sold in the US = The smart clothing manufacturing project led by IARPA requires advanced technology, so it will take time until commercialization. However, various smart clothing equipped with electronic components such as sensors are currently being sold in the US, although not to this extent.
Hoop is introducing smart clothing equipped with sensors in swimsuits, pants, sports bras, shirts, arm sleeves, and underwear. Through the sensors installed inside the clothing, data on the entire body such as tension, recovery, sleep, stress, and exercise volume can be measured.
Nadi has released smart yoga pants that connect to a smartphone and detect yoga poses and guide proper poses and movements. The pants have an accelerometer sensor that can read the direction of the body, and haptic vibrations installed around the hips, knees, and ankles can help you learn yoga poses properly.
Sensoria is a smart sock with a built-in dock that can be used to attach microelectronic devices. Similar to a typical fitness tracker, it records data such as the number of steps, speed, and distance traveled, and also helps identify walking or running styles that can cause injuries. When you wear this sock and walk, it can identify whether you are a pronator, who pushes off the ground using only the inside of your foot, that is, the big toe, or a supinator, who mainly uses the outside of your foot, when your foot lands and falls. In addition, the mobile app linked to the smart sock has an audio coach that provides real-time feedback, allowing you to adjust your stride and form better walking habits.
◆ Our company's implications = Smart clothing is a form that combines technology and fashion, and is expected to make our daily lives healthier, more convenient, and more sustainable. Smart clothing can check heart rate, body temperature, and exercise volume in real time, helping with health management, and it can collect and analyze personal lifestyle patterns and health information to provide personalized services, so it has great growth potential, especially in the healthcare and entertainment sectors.
Furthermore, it is expected to support efforts for a sustainable environment through energy collection and storage, environmental monitoring, etc., and to contribute to strengthening social networks by strengthening interaction and connections.
Analyst A, who works at a consulting firm, said in an interview with KOTRA Trade Center, “The wearable technology market is experiencing significant growth due to the success of products such as smartwatches and fitness trackers, and smart clothing can be seen as a natural extension of this trend,” and predicted, “As related technologies become more advanced, smart clothing is likely to receive more attention in the future.”
He said, “There is a lot of interest in smart clothing in the sports, healthcare, and wellness sectors in particular,” and “Clothing that can monitor health indicators such as body temperature, muscle activity, and vital signs is potentially useful not only to general consumers but also to medical professionals and athletes, and is expected to play a pivotal role, especially as telemedicine and remote patient monitoring increase.”
The KOTRA trade office that delivered this news pointed out, “The market is still in its early stages of formation and a lot of money is being invested in the research and development stage, so price accessibility is low, but the related industry expects that more consumers will seek it out as technology adoption increases and manufacturing processes improve.” They added, “Our companies considering advancing into the U.S. should review related regulations such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in advance, as smart clothing can be considered medical devices depending on its function.”
Provided by KOTRA Silicon Valley Trade Office
