Google Smart Apparel Patent: Provides tactile feedback to users

In fact, Google has recently acquired a related new patent: “interactive apparel” that provides tactile feedback to users.

Patents show that mobile devices such as smart phones are not always easy to integrate into everyday life, while wearable devices such as smart clothing are easier to implement. The problem is that they can be difficult to manufacture and may lack good functionality.

Many smart apparel can provide tactile feedback, but usually only a little tactile feedback, which may be difficult for the user to perceive. This is what Google is trying to solve: by incorporating multiple vibration motors into the apparel to ensure that the user perceives tactile feedback.

Tactile feedback in smart clothing is useful for a variety of reasons. For example, it can inform the user that the smartphone receives the notification and information, or when the user clicks on the touch sensitive portion of the smart clothing, the system can alert the user whether the smartphone has any unchecked messages.

The patent states that such techniques can be used in jackets, shirts or pants, but can ultimately be used in any outfit.

Google is no stranger to the concept of smart clothing. At the end of 2017, they partnered with Levi's to launch the Commuter Trucker Jacket. The jacket is powered by Google's Project Jacquard software and has a built-in touch-sensitive sensor that allows users to control music playback, get information about commuting, and more.

Project Jacquard is mainly equipped with plastic sensors in the sleeve, but Google's new patent states that the touch-sensitive surface may eventually be more deeply integrated into the jacket.

It should be noted that companies such as Google apply for a large number of patents each year, and their inventions do not necessarily appear in actual products.

Google and Levi's smart jackets combine clothing and technology more closely.

This smart jacket uses a special conductive wire that can be applied to existing looms to woven the conductive threads into the fabric instead of embroidering the surface of the fabric. In this way, with the controller, the ordinary denim jacket becomes a smart suit that can be touched to perform certain operations.

In Google's settings, a touch-enabled smart jacket will hold up some of the phone's screen functions, such as double-clicking, sliding in and out, holding the jacket cuffs to answer or hang up, start voice services, switch songs, Quick mute and other operations. According to Levi's, this smart jacket is very durable. If you want to clean it, just remove the cuff. In addition, research on washable wearable devices is further advanced, and some results have been achieved.

Now Google & Levi's smart jackets are on the market, priced at $350, equivalent to about 2,316 yuan.

Deep interpretation: smart textiles are the mainstream of wearable devices

In recent years, the textiles that have been raging in the wind have gone to the capacity war, and the smoke has dissipated. Those enterprises that have been in the limelight have disappeared, or they have been merged, or they have been tempted by the heat. This year, the textile market has ushered in a long-lost cycle. With the development of the market, some new trends in the textile industry are becoming the outlet. However, taking advantage of this opportunity to shuffle , the global industry giants have always forgotten to insert a foot, and now they are aiming at the big cake of textile and clothing to try to lay out.

For smart wear, why do we always remember the watch or bracelet? Wearing a smart bracelet on the wrist and a smart phone in the pocket has become the standard for many fitness people.

But the wrist is not the best place to put a lot of sensors, and tracking fitness is not the best application for sensors. If we want "wearable devices" to really work, the so-called pedometers are not enough. New technologies that give useful data and actionable advice and can actually improve the quality of our lives are the future of wearables.

Although the idea of ​​smart textiles has existed for several years. But so far, large-scale applications on the market have just begun. Since most wearable devices are based on sports and fitness, most of today's smart clothing is still providing the main function of providing fitness indicators and exercise analysis. But at the same time, many companies are beginning to consider the direction outside of fitness running, and this is likely to become the future of wearable technology.

People wear clothes every day regardless of age, gender, and health. This is why smart clothing has huge market potential and is a technology that almost everyone uses.

Smart textiles, the next big market for disputes

Smart textiles are easier to customize than other wearable devices. Sensors can be easily integrated into any type of clothing, making it easy to design different color options and styles for a smart T-shirt. But for smart watches/bracelets, it takes extra time and money to make different styles.

The SG Smart Apparel Organizing Committee suggested that Chinese clothing brands and technology companies should be deployed in advance in the smart clothing market. It is difficult to come in again in the next period.

The device can be removed from the outer casing, belt, wristband, headband, removable cover in the device, luggage with straps, and even smart clothing and smart sofas. More importantly, smart fibers can be applied to armbands, wallets, sleeves, pockets, or other structures that electronic devices can be inserted into, such as clothing, hats, belts, and seat cushions for chairs, sofas, and the like.

Microsoft has also recently applied for a patent for smart fiber. Google has even collaborated with Levi's to launch a smart jacket.

According to Apple, its technology is suitable for fibers made from natural materials such as chemical fiber, metal, glass, graphite, ceramics, and cotton and bamboo. Maybe one day, the user just has to sit on the sofa and the sofa can “read” some of the user's physiological indicators, such as weight, body temperature and time spent sitting on the sofa.

One of the inventors of Apple's patent is Daniel Podhajny. Pod Hagini served in Nike and received at least 20 patents related to smart fibers during his work at Nike. His position at Apple was "product designer."

Apple's hiring of Pod Hagini may mean that it is developing smart fibers that can be used in future smart products.

DuPont Advanced Materials (hereinafter referred to as DuPont) recently launched the latest generation of stretchable electronic ink and film technology for smart apparel in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, and launched a new brand - DuPont Intexar smart apparel Technology. Intexar transforms plain fabrics into active, networked smart apparel that provides critical biometric measurements, including heart rate, respiration rate, motor coordination, and muscle tone. Intexar has excellent stretchability and comfort and can be easily applied to apparel.

Michael Burrows, Global Business Manager, DuPont Advanced Materials Division, said: “Every athlete, from professional players to daily exercise, can benefit from smart clothing and improve physical performance; but smart clothing must be beautiful and comfortable.” “And Intexar is a The technology that changes the rules of the game, it will really change people's imagination of smart clothing, so that it has the same comfort as general sportswear."

As a high-quality, high-performance stretchable electronic ink and flexible substrate, Intexar can be seamlessly embedded into the fabric to match the standard garment process, forming a thin line that fits the fabric. Intexar's smart clothing can withstand more than 100 repeated washings, and can withstand repeated stretching and demanding use.

Commercial applications of Intexar Technology:

Body Plus presents a smart fitness outfit with DuPont Intexar for real-time monitoring and data collection of heart rate, breathing and muscle movements, which has been launched in the Chinese market. BodyPlus General Manager Gao Xiangdong said: "BodyPlus Aero is our latest generation of smart apparel products. It uses DuPont Intexar smart apparel technology as a connector to create a stylish and comfortable personal sports and fitness management platform with high-end flexible sensing technology. BodyPlus' vision - 'Let a healthier world come closer to realization'."

OMsignal showcases two products: one for high-end fitness sports underwear and the other for comfortable, style-inspired underwear, both with advanced sensing technology that records ECG, breathing and physical activity in real time. Frederic Chanay, CEO and co-founder of OMsignal, said: "We use Intexar smart apparel technology for ECG sensors. Intexar technology can be used in a variety of applications, far beyond traditional sportswear, helping us turn smart apparel into the mainstream. ."

Samsung has to transform into smart clothes, and has applied for a patent!

Pickpockets, sports, and other tricks can save you from the rush of your phone. This is one of the important functions that Samsung wants to do with smart clothes - let your phone have power at any time.

A few days ago, Samsung won a new patent. This is a smart suit that combines hardware such as processors, sensors and energy harvesters. According to the patent illustration, in the front of the smart clothing, where the human body moves up and down, the sensor is placed, the sensor will collect data, the processor analyzes and processes, and finally understands the user behavior. The energy of this part is all self-sufficient by the smart clothes. The energy collector can convert the user's kinetic energy into electric energy, and the battery on the back of the clothes is used for electricity storage.

Of course, it is not limited to clothes. Hats, jackets, pants, and shoes can be matched with hardware such as sensors to collide with more "sparks."

However, since it is clothing, it is necessary to consider factors such as comfort and washability. The previous condition limits the battery's inability to expand significantly and the battery capacity will be affected. Samsung's patent book does not clearly indicate the specific capacity of the battery, only that the capacity is not large. If it is convenient for wireless or wired charging in the future, it should be able to use it from time to time. Concerns about cleaning smart clothes, Samsung's documents did not give an answer, and perhaps more progress will be revealed later.

Samsung put forward the concept of "SmartSuit" and launched products such as smart belts and smart shirts. Take the BodyCompass smart shirt as an example. The clothes are equipped with ECG and EMG sensors. The sensors collect real-time data such as user movement, heart rate during daily life, movement steps, body fat, etc., and then give feedback through smartphone or watch feedback.

In fact, Samsung's smart clothing is just a microcosm of human pursuit of materialized intelligence. Its main idea is to mine the front-end collection part of data processing. It is consistent with many wearable devices such as smart watches, and the defects are also the back end of data processing. It is still to be expanded to form a closed loop, that is, how to collect the collected data to be worthwhile to enhance user stickiness. However, compared to smart watches, Samsung smart clothing has a differentiated function - providing power, such as mobile phones, with the development of wireless charging technology, in the future, you can put your phone in your pocket to complete the charging, think about it is also very exciting.

Clothing + a Finnish company believes that people are increasingly hoping to learn more about their physical condition and to be informed of their health data anytime and anywhere to get practical advice. It can be seen that in the direct interaction with the human body, the clothes we wear are unmatched by any other wearable device.

Well-known clothing brands have also entered the wearable field. Ralph Lauren has launched an intelligent sports t-shirt designed by OMSignal at the Tennis Open to collect athletes' sports index on the spot to help athletes adjust accordingly.

Smart underwear will become a bestseller

Underwear is close to the skin and is therefore the most reasonable place to monitor a person's vital signs. Smart bras measure breathing, heart rate and muscle tone to determine health and mental indicators such as stress levels, participation, and anxiety. The same applies to smart underwear, smart socks or smart T-shirts.

The current fitness bracelet tries to get all the data from the human wrist, which is very difficult to do. Because of certain indicators such as muscle tension and respiration rate, the activity tracking on the wrist does not reach accuracy. Even a fitness tracker like the popular Fitbit, if you are always playing an exaggerated gesture while running or walking, there will be a big error in the number of steps read.

Smart clothing will lead the next generation of wearable devices

OMSignal currently offers a range of sweatshirts for men and an intelligent sports bra for women that track the wearer's typical fitness metrics such as steps, running distance, calories and heart rate, as well as many other unique features. Measurements such as respiratory efficiency, fatigue levels, and the consumption of a person's body during exercise.

And the data is not just for motion analysis, the next goal is to use biometric data to track user emotions, breathing, heart rate, and muscle tone. When people are stressed and stressed, there will be conditions such as shallow breathing, increased heart rate, and tight body. OMSignal's smart bra or T-shirt recognizes all these physical changes and reminds you to take deep breaths and adjust yourself with push notifications to ease tension.

The company also hopes to enter the medical field of wearable technology through its smart clothing. In the future, pregnant women may be able to share their baby's heartbeat through the OMSignal app using data captured by sensors in smart clothes. People with heart or other disease problems can get a warning of physiological changes before an emergency occurs. Smart clothing can notify you, your loved ones, and even medical staff, telling them that you need help.

Smart clothing has great potential to get out of the smart circle/watch circle. When wearable devices become the mainstream in the market, smart clothing should be the leader.

The SG Smart Apparel Organizing Committee suggested that Chinese clothing brands and technology companies should be deployed in advance in the smart clothing market. It is difficult to come in again in the next period.