Slides from an hour long talk I wrote in July 2012 and presented on introducing wearable technology. It includes my thoughts on the evolution of wearable tech, lots of examples and some of my own work, questions and conclusions.

1. Introduction to Wearable Technology
Rain Ashford
http://rainycatz.wordpress.com

2. Hello, my name is Rain and I create interactive wearables and art, working with
many flavours of microcontrollers & various components…

3. I’m interested in…
 Social interaction – formal and
informal events where one is put
on the spot/ ecruciating
circumstances: networking, bars,
clubs, meet ups, conferences, etc.
Building multi-sensor wearables which
output data on the wearer’s
physiological signs comprised of:
 a logging device
 sensors – tracking physiological
signs: heart rate, accelerometer,
temperature, etc.
 visually reactive
 sonically reactive
 it might record sound / feedback
from user
 camera
‘Yr In Mah Face’: temperature /mood sensing t-shirt

4. Wearable technology is a diverse area,
and can be fashionable, whimsical, fun,
practical, arty, serious, protective,
interactive, sensing, medical, energy
harvesting, communicating,
musical and lots more…

5. In the beginning…
Wearable technology of yore: heavy, messy, angular & clunky

6. Beam me up Scotty…
..sci-fi has a lot to answer for!

7. But we’re moving on from when wearable tech
evoked thoughts of axe grinding cyborgs, serf
robots, toasters and space pirates…

8. Meanwhile in real life…
The miniaturization of technology has changed how people build & use wearable tech &
electronics; they’re no longer comprised of cold, bulky sharp, boxy & ugly components that
you might prefer to remain hidden

9. The aesthetics & challenges of
technology vs garments / accessories is
not trivial and need much more
research to get them to work together…
..plus how to manufacture, distribute
and market these products.
AR HMD / HUD examples

10. Though the way we are interacting
with technology is changing our
expectations. We want ‘always on’
communications, apps and devices
that work in an ambient manner to
only alert us when needed…
..but there’s still a lot of work to be done in
areas such as interoperability, sustainability
and battery size / management

11. Interesting questions…
 What are we going to use
Wearable Technology for?
 Will smartphones / computers
end up integrated into our
clothing?
 Ethics issues - who owns / has
access to our data?
 Privacy & Surveillance
 How far will we get towards
Cyborg culture - implants
anyone?
CuteCircuit M-Dress

12. Don’t underestimate Hacker & Maker Culture having an influence on the
evolution of technology
By inspiring a new collective of technologists and creatives to enter the tech industries

13. New business opportunities, approaches
to working, commerce & online communities
..a convergence of readily available electronic components, shared knowledge through
communities and open source approaches to technology has broken barriers to learning &
creativity

14. Sewable Electronics
For me, the availability of sewable electronics & e-textiles has revolutionised the way I and
many other artists & designers work

15. ..plus the styling of some of these components has made them more attractive to work with

16. …allowing me create much more
elegant work

17. …incorporating the technology into the
design

18. The LilyPad!
Pin 1 - TX/D1
Pins 2,3,4 - D2, D3, D4
Pin 5 - GND or "-" (ground)
Pin 6 - VCC or "+" (power)
Pins 7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15 - D5 through to D13
Pins 16,17,18,19,20,21 - A0 through to A5 (analog pins)

19. LilyPad Arduino
Microcontroller
What I combine with it:
 Conductive Thread
 E-Textiles
 C (ish) Programming
 Sensors
 Actuators
 Hacked Electronics
 Conductive items
To make:
 Wearables
 Sound Artworks
 Games
 All Interactive

20. LilyPad Arduino Microcontroller
• Fabulousness • My wish list
 It’s sewable!  An industrial version
 It’s open source – you can find  Make it cheaper
the Eagle files & free code  More modules please
libraries online / with IDE  Different sizes and shapes of
 Good number of digital & board
analogue I/O  Choice of microcontrollers
 Great vector for encouraging  Variable voltages
girls/ boys /adults/ artists
/anyone / to experience  More competitors, to increase
electronics innovation (Flora, Seeedstudio)
 It’s round (dismisses the idea that  Development of washable
electronics are sharp grey and conductive thread
cold)
 Enthusiastic & helpful community

21. Sensors…
The availability of sensors in particular that allowed me to bring my ideas to fruition

22. DIY Sensors (and actuators)!
..plus there’s lots of information out there on how to make your own!

23. Components: Sensors vs. Actuators
A sensor is an input device / an actuator an output device
Sensors Actuators
 Input: stimulus / A physical  Input: electrical signal -
quantity, property, or current, voltage, phase,
condition which is measured frequency, etc,
 Output: electrical signal -  Output: mechanical (force,
current, voltage, phase, pressure, displacement) or
frequency display function (light, display,
Variations: output can dial indication, etc)
sometimes be displacement:
thermometers, magnetostrictive
and piezoelectric sensors.
Some sensors combine sensing
*and* actuation.

24. Actuators
for wearable technology include…
 LEDs  Electroluminescent Wire
 LCD / OLED Display  Electroluminescent
 Servos Panels
 Motors
 Piezoelectric buzzers
 Speakers

25. Sensors
for wearable technology include…
 Optical, Light & Sound  GPS
 Temperature & Humidity  Compass / magnetic field
 Energy Harvesting  Weight
 Radiation / Environment  Pressure / Force
 Heart Rate  RFID
 Proximity / object  Electric Current /
detection Potential
 Gas & Liquid / Chemical  Touch
 Inertial  WiFi
 Biosensor  EEG

26. Sensors, actuators, industry and creatives - bringing it all together
In my research I’m starting to note key areas of sensor & actuator usage, against groups &
areas of usage…

27. Sports & interest in wellbeing/self
monitoring has made much headway
into pushing Wearable Tech into the
mainstream, especially as many gadgets
work with smartphones…
2012 Olympics: Lolo Jones (US) used using
motion-detecting sensors to trigger high
speed video cameras in her 100m hurdle bid.
2012 Olympics: Mimi Cesar (UK) gymnast, used a `MotivePro’ by
Birmingham City University, a vibrating sensor suit to track and
record her movements.
..unsurprisingly Apple has taken note (pic Dec 11)!

28. Some favourite examples of sensing / active clothes & Elena Corchero Vintage Solar Fan &
accessories … Parasol
Light sensing dresses by
Rainbow Winters:
uses thermochromatic
reactive to light, colour
changing inks
Dhani Sutanto’s Oyster RFID pass ring for
using on London Transport

29. Sensing Art and Performance pieces… Elena Corchero Vintage Solar Fan &
Parasol
Ricardo O’
Nascimento:
“PAPARAZZI
LOVER” a reactive
dress that
responds to the
flash of a camera
Rainbow Winters:
Thunderstorm Dress: icardo O’
lights up to sound Nascimento:
“UNTANGLE ME”
dress is a playful
twist on a garment
come alive

30. ..lets not forget Wearable 3D Printing! Naim Josefiand Souzan Youssouf,
Beckmans College of Design.
3D bikini by Continuum
Fashion, printed in nylon 12
printed to order from
Continuum’s Shapeways
shop
Iris van Herpen & Daniel Widrig’s
amazing dresses! Andreia Chaves’ printed shoes

31. Energy Harvesting clothing: Energy harnessing space suits: NASA Motivating Undergraduates in
Science and Technology initiative. The suits incorporate piezoelectric
zinc-oxide nanowires which creates a charge in response to physical
strain like bending or twisting.
In-shoe device: University of Wisconsin-
Madison
Andrew Schneider’s solar bikini retrofitted with
photovoltaic film strips sewn together in series with
conductive thread An in-shoe device designed to harvest the energy that
is created by walking, and store it for use in mobile
electronic devices

32. Medical: Epidermal Electronics 1960s wearable insulin pump
Electronic tattoo, University of Illinois
Monitors electrophysiological signals
associated with the heart, other muscles
and brain activity
2012 artificial pancreas & insulin pumps
in development as shown by Gil de Paula
of Pancreum at WT Conference 2012

33. I <3 0X0: an interactive
artwork, game, musical fancy
and experiment in conductive
Velcro
I wanted to create something interactive, as I
could find no other documentation for
conductive Velcro, some sort of plaything
seemed an interesting idea and after some
pondering I decided on a 3 x 3 grid system

34. Hacking existing tech & combining sensors has allowed me to make pieces such as
‘You Make My <3 Flutter’: a proximity detecting, heart rate sensing ‘techlace’ visualising
physical signs

35. And for looking at social interaction -‘Yr In Mah Face’: temperature /mood sensing t-shirt
- uses Celsius temperature data from a sensor, averages it, then visualises the results via
LEDs.

36. I’m also interested in practical uses - Don’t Break My Heart is a wearable, colour-coded
distance warning system prototype for cyclists to wear on their back

37. Summary: exciting time for e-textiles & wearable tech
 Availability of sewable electronics is revolutionising the work of artists &
designers
 Self-monitoring movement i.e. Quantified Self is pushing wearable tech into
the mainstream
 Hackspaces & online communities are helping demystify electronics & coding
 Open Source ethos is sharing & making knowledge more accessible
 Small Maker start-ups are changing the face of tech entrepreneurs
 Sewable electronics are inspiring a broader demographic to become
interested in electronics & coding
 School age students are investigating electronics & code via e-textiles and
wearable tech

38. Summary: wearable tech will be improved by
 Necessity for more standards and classifications
 Sustainability – recycling, reusing, repurposing - supply chain isn’t yet set up for
wearable tech
 A lot of focus on the technology, but not enough on what the consumer wants:
design, uses, size
 Marketing focus – sales, dissemination, tech know how - how do we help the
public understand and use?
 Developments in battery / power supply tech: less bulky, better longevity, lighter,
comfortable
 Washable circuits, sensors and microcontrollers – to gain acceptability they need
robustness and logivity

39. Those interesting questions again…
 What are we going to use Wearable Technology for?
 Will smartphones / computers end up integrated into our
clothing?
 Ethics issues - who owns / has access to our data?
 Privacy & Surveillance
 How far will we get towards Cyborg culture - implants anyone?

40. Thank you for your attention!
@Rainycat
http://rainycatz.wordpress.com
Rain Ashford 2012