Textile display Communicative textiles

Several technologies able to be used for the development of communicative textile devices have been presented. Some of them are already used for the development of textile displays. Their emission of reflective characteristics allow their use for different types of applications. Emissive devices such as luminescent stmctures or optical fibres are preferred for high-visibility outfits for personal safety, for art and fashion design or for advertising events. Reflective devices offer a softer, more discreet colour change, which could preferentially be used for everyday applications such as communicative clothes, home furnishings or fashion. 

In modem warfare, the importance of individual soldiers as sources of information will increase. New systems and equipment will be designed to enhance a soldier s role as a link in a local surveillance network. There will be increased importance placed on communication between soldiers and other units on the battlefield such as armoured vehicles and unmanned aerial vehicles (Figure 11.4). To cater to all these needs, the personal equipment of a soldier could include head-mounted displays, GPS, digital radio and video cameras. When designing these systems, textile anteimae will play a role in optimising the system performance. 

A health monitoring E-Textile technology was demonstrated for the first time in 2006 at the Smart Fabric Conference in Washington, DC, by Exmovere. The medical device company created the software and Bluetooth communication protocols that allowed an E-Textile jacket created by H. Lee Wainwright to display the biophysical status of a person in real time from a watch (Fig. 9.8) installed with GSR sensors. 

In addition, E-Textile communication could be useful in identifying a friend or foe on a battlefield. By employing Infrared LEDs operating at 940 mn, a frequency beyond the eye s ability to see, connected to PMMA plastic fiber bundles able to conduct IR defining alphanumeric characters in a dynamic or static display could be used to instantly determine a person s identity (Fig. 9.13). 

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