Assignment 4

Wearable electronics are at the forefront of technology and fashion. A wearable technology is
"always attached to a person and is comfortable and easy to keep and use." (1)
A book that beleives that electronics are the way forward is Xiang Tao's 'Wearable electronics and photonics', this book is a combination of may experts in the feild of integrated electronics. The many articals which are within the book show what kind of technology can be used and how they are integrated into the fabric. The evidence in this book is potentialy life changing as it could improve the lives of many people around the world.

There are three types of wearable technoligy. The first and most common at this time is block based, which is a detachable unit. An example of this is a removable mp3 player. The garment would hold a pocket where the mp3 player would be stored which would conect to speakers in the hood. The second is embedded technology which can not be removed, an example of this is an integrated key pad into the sleeve of a jacket. The third is fiber based which is woven into the garment. There is a book by Koninklijke Philips NV which shows how these garments may look.

To have an integerated system X.Tao talks about several things that are needed, if the system was in a jacket for instance an interface would be needed. You would also need communication, an energy supply, data managment and integrated circuts. X.Tao also talks about the many institutions that would welcome the use of integrated technology in clothing. The militray would be very interested as commnication and protection would be greatly inproved.

"In combat soilders must use their hands at all times to control weapons and machinery. Wearable devices to assist them would be very useful." (2)

An onboard computer could assist soilders over difficult terrain, through forests and even at night. This kind of device could also help locate the enemy and fallen comrades. This technology could also be used in other disciplines as another artical illistrates. Mahoud El-Sherif says

"Uniforms for fire fighters, security guards and special mission personel will provide all the information required for their safty and security, as well as transmit remotely information an their health and enviromental conditions to a centersl facility." (3)

Another group mentioned that would benifit would be the medical professinons. A paitent and doctor could be separated by houndreds of mile and the doctor would know exactaly what was wrong through the use of a computer and scanner built into a garment that the paitient would wear. This technology would be able to monitor blood presure, the internal organs and even brain activity. Another main group would be hill walkers and mountain rescue as this technology is light weight and compact. An onboard computer could be used as a tracking device to help find missing people in rescue situations.

Although in this artical X.Tao has show the uses for wearable electronics there are some draw backs that need to be taken in to consideration. The garment that the electronic is built into need to be washable and flexable but not breakable. It should also be waterproof especially in soilders uniforms and the rescue serveses. If a garment faild on any one of these points then it would be unlikely to succeed on the market.

There are a few garments on the market at the moment. One is a bluetooth headset built into the hood of a jacket another is a mobile phone snow jacket that contains a key pad in the arm and a mouth piece in the coller. As this is new technology there are few truly integrated items on the market. There are however jackets that contain a pocket for mp3 player and mobile phones that connect to speakers in the hood or coller.

The purpose of this artical by Xiang Tao is to highlight the growing popularity of wearable electronics and how in this day and age a computer jacket is not the stuff of science fiction films it is the next step in our growing society.

'Integration of fibreoptic sensors and sensing networks into textiles structures' by Mahoud El-Sherif also shows the way integrated electronics is at the fore front of our technological discoveries. El-Sherif explains that

"In the twenty first century the development of electronics and photonic textiles will form communication systems and personal computers to biomedical engieneering and heath monitoring equipment." (4)

This El-Sherif beleves to be the future, he is predicting the use of flexible TV screens that can be foilded so small they could fit in a pocket. This artical also talk about how these fabrics are made and how its not just a simple case of weaving or sewing the fiber together their is a specific way. The original way to weaving and knitting bends the optical fibers. This means that the electronic fiber can't function properly as the signal is destorted. However there is a way to get around this problem. The use of a serpentine shape, although still slightly bent reduces the destortion and enables the fibers to work. Another way is to use the twill weave. This has less bending curviture than the others so there for performes the highest.

Scientists performed an experiment useing integrated fibers. The experiment was carried out to measure static and dynamic strains in the textile structures. The experiment was called the Parachute.

"Strand of optical fibers were stretched into small pieces of a canopy nylon fabrics and tested."

The experiment was a success in the field tests. Although the parachute was developed to test the strain on the fabric it could also be used to measure enviromental conditions. El-Serif goes on to say,

"The methods developed to manufacture smart parachutes and smart uniforms can be applied to many other textile structures. Also, the methodology that has been developed presentes excellent possibilities for design of wireless fiber optic systems for health monitoring." (5)

Another use for wearable electronics is in art. A magazine artical that likens these garment to "superhero costumes" is Betty-Ann Jordan's artical in Azure magazine.

"Whether reacting to the users mood, generating electricity or morphing into protective shields the latest smart wear has leaped from fiction to reality."(6)

Jordan's like the others articals comments on the use of this technology in the medical professions. She talks about a breast screening smart bra that would ues the same principales as the body scanners previously mentioned. Another break through that Jordon talks about is a range of hats, gloves and other garments that harden on impact. The fabric moves like any other but when a hard knock occurs the fabric hardens to protect the body. I find this technology fascinating as the implications for our safty in combat or in an accident would be lessened, a serious injury could be prevented.

Both these articals show that the new technology being worked on at the moment is at the forefront of design , industry and defence. Both articals show how usful integrated technology can be although it has its drawbacks the plus points out weight the negitives. I origionaly began to research handbag security but quickly relised that there is far more to wearable electronics than I first thought. Ofcourse I realised the defence opportunities but never imagined there could ever be wearable computers that could monitor peoples bodies or fabric that hardens on impact. These articals have tought me a great deal about what wearable electronics and photonis has to offer and it has made me think about how I could encorporate this technology into my own work. I feel the next step is to research new designers and what they could bring to the technology and to possibly contact a electronic textile maker to see how the fabric is made.



bibliographie:

El-Sherif. M (2005), Wood Publishing in Textiles ltd, Cambridge England
Jordan. B (2008), web http://www.azuremagazine.com/magazine/backissues/features.php?id=1654&c=2
Tao. X ,(2005) ,Wood Publishing in Textiles ltd, Cambridge England




Quotes:
1: page 1 Xaing Tao
2: page 10 Xaing Tao
3: page 105 Mahoud El-Sherif
4: page 105 Mahoud El-Sherif
5: page 133 Mahoud El-Sherif
6: web artical Betty-Ann Jordan


(sorry if there are spelling mistakes I tried to spell check but it wouldnt let me)

the wire project

sorry I've been ill :(,

anyway..... the wire project seems to be going well, we were in the media lab for most of today playing about in photoshop and illustrator which was fun. my work this block is based on Gary Hume's work. this piece by Hume is one of my favorites, he does a lot of work in line which is why i chose him.

i have decided to make a brooch using filigree. i have made my own drawings like Gary Hume's in which i have layered my life drawing. i have chosen sections from these which will be soldered together.

Assignment 3

During Assignment 2 we, Janna and I, found that we were researching into the same field and therefore decided to investigate bag protection and smart materials together. Over all we found this assessment quite difficult to grasp as the subject we chose is still developing.
KIEKENS, P (2006) Advanced Research Workshop on Intelligent Textiles for Personal Protection and Safety, IOS PRESS 2006
This article gives an insight into the construction of smart textiles. It also looks into the field of intelligent textiles for personal safety and protection which have resulted in building blocks (BB) I think that this is one first steps into acknowledging the improvement in bag security.
DE ROSSI, D (2006) Wearable Mechanizing and Emerging Technologies in Fabric-based Actuations, IOS PRESS 2006
This conference looks into wearable kinesthetic and haptic interfaces between human and machines. It indicates that improvement in the accuracy of human movement tracking systems are being made for tracking fine manipulations. This shows that if such technology was embedded in handbags or suitcases (e.g airport luggage) that can easily be miss-placed or stolen this device would be very significant in order to reclaim any missing objects.
KONCAR, V and BOUSSU, F (2006) Flexible Displays on Textiles for Personal Protection, IOS PRESS 2006
This conference is very relevant into the research in what we are aiming to look into, going into the idea of combining weaving computer and communications technology into uniforms. The aim of this conference was originally to tackle terrorism but through the use of clothing we feel that we could use this technology to fight against handbag theft and muggings. One of our ideas would be to incorporate a small electronic device into the interior of handbags/ luggage bags, this technology break through would be very beneficial in the design of our vision of having safe, affordable bags for all purposes and classes.
Betty and Jordan , http://www.Azuremagazine.com (march/april 2008)
In this artical it discusses reactive textiles which are inspired by superhero costumes, for example batmans bulletproof armor. This explores intelligent clothing, from light up snow suits to bluetooth shirts. These materials can react to heat by colour change. A three-quarter length jacket with photovoltaic solar panels and a removable collar. After four or five hours of exposure to the sun the panels recharge a breast pocket battery creating virtually unlimited juice for the wearers ipod and phone. If this kind of technology is available for everyday use then surely it can be incorporated into our everyday lives as-well.
Joanne Hodge, http://www.joprints.co.uk (2009)
Jo Hodge, a Dundee graduate, produces textiles that are heat reactive and light reactive. These playful garments could create a visual awareness of stolen items, i.e a handbag could be registered to its owner and then if it has been stolen it would change into a well known pattern that could warn other members of public that the bag doesn't rightfully own to them. Therefore giving a visual indication that a robbery or theft has taken place!
CHALAYAN, H (2007) http://www.husseinchalayan.com
In this website Chalayan shows off his inventive skills by producing many garments transform into more needed items, such as a table taking the shape of a dress and vis versa. Although at first this does not seem relevant to the idea of handbag/bag safety, the initial idea of transforming materials and technology would perhaps help even households robberies. For example if instead of the table transforming into a dress it contained a secret compartment in which prize possessions could be easily stored and only located by its owner. Our idea is to incorporate a secret panel into a handbag that could be accessed by a finger print device. This technology seems quite futuristic at the present date but in these crime stricken times we will need to be developing further for later years.
TAO, X (2000) Wearable Electronics and Photonics, Cambridge, England; Woodhead Publishing LTD
This book looks into wearable electronics and photonics covering many areas of cutting-edge research and development into this field providing us with an in-sight into this technology. This book involves a panel of international experts. A summary of recent developments are included which allow us to look into this field of expertise. Topics related to wearable photonics such as fibre-optic sensors and integrated smart textiles structures are the main focus of this book. We feel that this new look into technology will help us to be able to develop our idea further as it contains the information that we will be requiring to know.

my top 5

here are my top 5 jewellery websites, i dont really have them in order because there all great site.

1. sdc gallery
2. whynot? comtempary jewellery
3. devientart
4. goldsmiths hall
5. dazzle exhibitions

and here are my other top 5 websites iv chosen a Scottish history site because i am very passionate about my heritage and inspired by the designs that were used in the past. i have also chosen 2 nature websites because i love animals and these sites offers the chance to see more unusual species.

1. BBC news
2. history of Scotland
3. last chance to see
4. lost land of the volcano
5. azure magazine




i also found joprint.co.uk which is good but is not related to jewellery and new designers .com

random stuff i found

just thought id stick these images up cos there really interesting. iv never seen any jewellery like this before and i love it (i want one now!!) there by a jeweller called moon young shin check her out she's really cool.

St Andrews exhibition

this is a selection of work from a jewellery exhibition in St Andrews that i visited yesterday. these pieces were my favourite although all the works were well made and interesting most of them were unwearable because they were to big or moved. i do understand that if people make jewellery just for an exhibition then they can be as extravagant as they like but these pieces were made by commission and are not wearable at all. i think that if these pieces were made smaller people would wear them all the time as there is no point in having jewellery just so it can lay in a drawer and gather dust.

this is my final piece for my vessel project. i have silver plated it and painted it with enamel paint. i am going to be exhibiting the pieces in a glass case with photos of graffiti and samples.

poster

I started by looking at crime prevention in the sales industry and how an environment can change a persons mood and behavior i explored this for a while and looked into alarms and CCTV. i then moved on and looked at the security officers and their uniforms. i started to think of what they have to do in there day to day jobs and how their cloths need to be protective, breathable and waterproof yet comfortable. i then started to think about tags and alarms in clothing and handbags. my research was then refined by looking at handbag thief and how to prevent this. some solutions that are already on the market are, bags with slash proof fabric and locking zips but what occurred to me was that all these bags are meant for travel not everyday use and that they are not stylish. my new design is a bag that contains all the safety features but is also stylish and user friendly. i also thought about the idea of tracking devices in bags that could be linked to your home computer and that you could notify the police if your bag was stolen. this tracker could be stitched into the fabric so no one would no it was there.

this is my group's brainstorm, we decided to talk about the crime prevention and this branched off into handbag thief and security for shops. we also talked about the uniforms the security officers wear and the environment's in which we shop.

i have chosen to concentrate on 3 aspects of this, the 1st handbag thief and how it could be improved. the 2nd uniforms and the 3rd the environment.

this week

this weeks been crazy. trying to finish my jewellery piece in time is harder than i thought. my piece is all about urban decay, I've been looking at graffiti, in particular the subway by my house which is covered in paint and dirt and there's been a few fires in it which has melted the lights.

my work concisest of 3 boxes witch i have hammered and solider. I'm about to silver plate the inside and paint the outside with enamel paint. I've created my own tag and my own graffiti to paint on the front.

This part is about the law of the few. It talks about people with social gifts, these people are known as salesmen, mavens and conectors. I particularly liked the section on Paul Revers ride. Its amazing that this phenomenon goes all the way through history and that its only really the conectors, mavens and salesmen that feature in the major events, as they no every one.

This part is about the power of context which branches off into crime, Samaritans and 150. in this chapter I particularly liked the story of Mr Goertz who tryed to stop crime in his area. I no how it feel to live with crime on your doorstep and that sometimes you want to do something about it, but because of intimidation you don't. I think he showed great courage in what he did trying to stop crime in his area although the means in which he did it I don't really agree with.

I have chosen to write about the stickiness factor. I concentrated on sesame street and blue's clue's and hopefully have fulfilled my brief. I found doing a proper mind map quite challenging as i tend to use spider diagrams more.

here's my full blog on the tipping point, sorry if its blury.

I found this pic while searching for vessels for the vessel project, just thought it was really cool, the way all the trees can be contained in a small box and be transported.

lectures

One thing i really like so for about these lectures is that they combine interesting facts with humour, this makes me even more interested in what is being said.

I will say more about the lectures and what I think after i have consulted my notes and got to grips with what I want to say.

one last thing before I go ...... check the air flow .......

2nd lecture

This weeks lecture was probable the first lectue that I really enjoyed. It made me think of thing in a differnt way, for instance how the name of something is just a name it doesnt mean anything, and how design is all around us and just because i am specialising in jewellery doesnt mean I have to stick to that, I am a designer not a Jewellery designer.

this is my first blog :) cant beleve im having to do this, computers aren't my friends :)