2021-06-11 08:09:42
Smart clothes is a new fashion in the coming years: digital ML fabric from MIT researchers with memory, temperature sensors and a trained neural network
MIT has created the first digitally capable fiber that can detect, store, analyze, and measure physical activity after being sewn into a shirt. Digital fibers enhance the ability of tissues to detect hidden structures in the human body, which can be used to monitor physical performance, medical reports and early detection of diseases, as well as retain impressions. For example, memorize wedding music in the dress you were wearing that day.
Until now, electronic fibers have been analog, carrying a continuous electrical signal, not digital. This is the first implementation of a structure with the ability to digitally store and process data, allowing a new dimension of content to be added to textiles to program fabrics.
The new fiber was created by placing hundreds of square silicon digital microchips in a preform, which was then used to create a polymer fiber. By precisely controlling the flow of the polymer, the researchers were able to create a fiber with a continuous electrical connection between the chips for tens of meters.
The fiber itself is thin and flexible, it can be passed through a needle, sewn into fabric and washed at least 10 times without breaking, and it is also not felt at all. Thanks to the digital addressing method, it is possible to include the functionality of one element without affecting the rest of the elements. Digital fiber can also store a large amount of information in memory. The researchers were able to record, store and read information about the fiber, including a 767-kilobyte full-color short video file and a 0.48-megabyte music file. Files can be stored for two months without power.
The fiber includes a neural network of 1,650 connections in tissue memory, which can be trained on data in real time directly on a person, analyzing information about body temperature taking into account physical activity. Thanks to this, in the future, clothing will be able to detect and warn people in real time about changes in health indicators (respiratory and heart rate) and transmit data about muscle activation to athletes during training. Now the smart fabric is controlled by a small external device, and in the future it is planned to develop a new chip as a microcontroller connected to the fiber itself.
https://news.mit.edu/2021/programmable-fiber-0603
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