Development of a Stretchable Circuit and its Integration Method on Knit Fabrics for Lower Back Injury Prevention

Abstract:

Advancements in wearable technology and smart textiles have also opened new possibilities in the sports and medical fields. One of the examples of a relevant application case can be found in cycling. This paper expands on previous research on stretchable electronics on knit fabrics. It describes the development of stretchable circuits for the lower back position and motion tracking to prevent back pain in recreational (road) cyclists by combining electrical and textile engineering with insights generated in rehabilitation sciences and sports physiotherapy. The research process included developing and testing of the functional circuit integrated into a cycling jersey. Thermoplastic polyurethane films were used for the textile integration process to achieve maximum comfort and after-life disassembly possibility. Reliability tests, e.g. washing (ISO 6330-2012) and tensile tests, were conducted. It is concluded that while mechanical stress during washing cycles remains a serious concern for reliability and durability, the use of water-repellent thermoplastic polyurethane sealing seriously reduces the damage caused by water and detergents.

• Periodical: Journal of Biomimetics, Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering (Volume 57)
• Pages: 17-26
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/p-681g46
• Online since: July 2022
• Authors: Paula Veske*, Pieter Bauwens, Frederick Bossuyt, Tom Sterken, Joke Schuermans, Jan Vanfleteren
• Keywords: Electronic Textiles, Flexible Electronics, Reliability, Textiles, Wearables

References

[1] Veske, P., Bauwens, P., Bossuyt, F., Sterken, T., & Vanfleteren, J. (2020). Development and Washing Reliability Testing of a Stretchable Circuit on Knit Fabric. Applied Sciences, 10(24), 9057.

DOI: 10.3390/app10249057

[2] Linz, T., von Krshiwoblozki, M., & Walter, H. (2010, 7-9 June 2010). Novel Packaging Technology for Body Sensor Networks Based on Adhesive Bonding A Low Cost, Mass Producible and High Reliability Solution. Paper presented at the 2010 International Conference on Body Sensor Networks.

DOI: 10.1109/bsn.2010.56

[3] International Organization for Standardization. (2012). ISO 6330:2012 - Textiles — Domestic washing and drying procedures for textile testing.

[4] International Organization for Standardization. (2018). ISO 20932-1:2018 - Textiles — Determination of the elasticity of fabrics — Part 1: Strip tests: International Organization for Standardization.

[5] Mann, S. (1997). Smart clothing": wearable multimedia computing and "personal imaging, to the Proceedings of the fourth ACM international conference on Multimedia, Boston, Massachusetts, USA. https://doi.org/10.1145/244130.244184.

DOI: 10.1145/244130.244184

[6] Mann, S. (1996). Smart clothing: the shift to wearable computing. Commun. ACM, 39(8), 23–24.

DOI: 10.1145/232014.232021

[7] Mann, S. (1997). Smart clothing: The wearable computer and wearcam. Personal Technologies, 1(1), 21-27.

DOI: 10.1007/bf01317885

[8] Liu, L., Yu, Y., Yan, C., Li, K., & Zheng, Z. (2015). Wearable energy-dense and power-dense supercapacitor yarns enabled by scalable graphene–metallic textile composite electrodes. Nature Communications, 6(1), 7260.

DOI: 10.1038/ncomms8260

[9] Zhao, J., Fu, Y., Xiao, Y., Dong, Y., Wang, X., & Lin, L. (2020). A Naturally Integrated Smart Textile for Wearable Electronics Applications. Advanced Materials Technologies, 5(1), 1900781. doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/admt.201900781.

DOI: 10.1002/admt.201900781