On Wearable Technology, Makers and Making

On Wearable Technology, Makers & Making
Makers’ Guild, London, July 2013
Rain Ashford - http://rainycatz.wordpress.com

I create interactive wearables and art
Images:RainAshford

2013 has been the year
of wearable technology!

Wearable technology is hugely diverse! areas include,
medical, art, fashion, whimsical, sensing, fun, practical,
protective, interactive, military, energy, decorative,
performance, energy harvesting, communicating, space,
music and lots more…
Images: K1 Smart Watch, LED Eyelash made by Soomi Park, Electronic Tattoo by John A Rogers/Uni of Illinois, Microsoft Printing Dress, Embedded electronics fibre by Nottingham Trent Universit
SLIVER cells by Australian National University, Remote Control T-Shirt by Rebecca Albrand Fitbit & personal tracking page& Mindwave project by Rain Ashford,
3D printed shoes & garment by Iris van Herpen, Pebble e-ink watches.

But extensions of the body, including wearable tech, have been around for much
longer..
Image: Titus Carisius, 46 BC coin Vulcan over anvil, tongs and hammer flanking,
all within laurel wreath by Carlo Morino
Image: Casio CFX-400C Scientific Caluculator Watch, 1985, by Magnus ManskeAbacus rings were around in Qing Dynasty (1644-1912), photo by Latca (Flickr)
Computerised timing devive to predict and cheat at rouletter by
Edward O Thorpe and Claude Shannon in 1961

..but until fairly recently wearable technology was heavy, angular, clunky or other wordly!
Wearable Wireless Webcam, Steve Man, 1994
Person with a head-mounted display (HMD), wired glove and joystick. Image: NASA
MannGlass Welding HelmetPhillips SKIN ‘Bubble’ dress

The miniaturisation of technology has changed how people build & use wearable tech &
electronics; they’re no longer comprised of cold, bulky sharp, boxy or ugly components that
you might prefer to remain hidden
Image: Steve Mann

Though there’s no escaping that wearable tech is influenced by science fiction
Images: Robocop DVD cover, pic by Plamdi, BSG motivational poster by thegreatgeekmanual
RobotWearableCop Venn diagram, derivitive repurposed by Rain Ashford, original by GraphJam, Robocop
Minis pic by infelix

..some interesting wearable tech has come out of it!
Images: Jean-Luc Picard as Borg Locutus by El Carlos / TriViso
HMD 2012 image by Rain Ashford
Images: Star Trek Tricorder & Peter Jansen’s Tricorder Project Mk2, Lt Uhura Paramount Pictures, Jawbone headset uncredited image

..there’s still a fear of technology, machines, cyborgs, robots, etc.
“Let’s just hope that they all don’t show up at once.“ Anon
Image: unknown author / popular culture

The convergence and miniturisation of computing and communications tech means
we’ll all be wearing our phones soon!
Image: Pinterest
Possibly a little more discreetly!

According to the media hype, Wearable Technology looks like..
Image: Antonio Zulgaldia

..also back to the future with smart watches!
Images: Watch, Tw810 Watch, MQ998 Cell Phone Watch, I’m Watch,
K1 Camera Wrist Watch Phone, MW08 Waterproof Watch, Pebble e-ink watch,
Nike+ GPS Watch, Sony Liveview, Sony MN2SW and Kreyos Smartwatch

..and they’re all trying to guess what this one looks like!
Images: GarRobMil & Paul Deneve Image: Courtesy Photo
..are Apple starting to take wearable technology seriously?

Crikey, what’s all this lifeglogging, lifelogging, augmented reality, data, veillance,
surveillance, sousvellance, McVeillance?
Images: Steve Mann & Eyetap, Google Glass, Glass Up & Lumus Optical
Steve Mann’s LifeGlogging sensorcam, Microsoft SenseCam, Mann, Fung & Lo cam & Memoto
..some of us feel this wearable tech is a bit familiar!

Image: Stop The Cyborgs Campaign
SAY WHAT?
..we’re still sorting out some of our etiquette to wearable tech / lifelogging

Image: Twinkle Tartiflette, Rain Ashford
What qualities might people look for in
wearable tech?
 Designed for individuals – have
elegance and style
 Comfortable to wear – both in terms
of weight/texture, but also don’t
make us self concious
 Don’t stigmatise – re-assess assistive
devices such as alarms
 Fun and useful
 Easy to use
 Meaningful
 Control of their own data!

At a similar time to Quantified Self movement, Maker & Hacker communities has been great
for bringing together artists, tinkerers, designers, coders, crafters and engineers!

..a convergence of readily available electronic components, shared knowledge through
communities and open source approaches to technology has broken barriers to learning &
creativity

..plus due to communties & individuals interested in sharing knowledge there’s lots of
information out there to help you make your own!
Images: screenshots from: Today I found Out, MIT Crafting Material Interfaces, Kobekant, Lynne Bruning, Instructables

For me, the availability of sewable electronic & e-textiles has revolutionised the way I and
many artists & designers work…
Images: LilyPad Arduino + accessories, Adafruit Flora pics by Rain Ashford,
LilyPad Dev kit by Protosnap, Sensors: Seeed Studio & Sparkfun

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

..don’t forget you can use other microcontrollers and components for wearable tech!
Images: Shrimp kit, mbed, ATtiny85 and arduino Uno, pics by Rain Ashford

Makers are also great teachers and knowledge sharers!
Ideas and work examples from Wearable Technology half
day workshop & three-day Easter bootcamp.
 8-16 year-old students loved how they could
personalise and control electronics very quickly!
 Wearable tech is a great vector for getting more
girls and boys interested in STEM subjects!

Wearable tech gives many a way into coding and
Electronics that is of interest to them.

Images: Colours of Birch glasses, Iris Van Herpen shoes & garment, Shapeways and Continuum Fashion bikini, Andreia Chaves’s Invisible Shoe,
Mesh purse by Vertigopolka, Dita Dress by Michael Schmidt and Francis Bitonti, pic by Albert Sanchez, EEG Visualising
Pendant frame viewed on Shapeways by Rain Ashford, Cortex Arm Exoskeleton by Jake Evil & Cortex Cast Systems
It’s not just fabrics based garments - 3D printing is going to radically change
how we design and create, wearable tech is no exception!

Images: Makers & Hackers 2009, Sound Spark by Eric Boyd, pics Rain Ashford
Some qualities Makers bring to
wearable technology:
 Imagination and ideas
 Innovation
 Crossover skills in creativity and
technology – wearable tech needs
designers and technologists to talk
 Willing to experiment
 Share ideas and knowledge rather
than work in secrecy / slap patents
on everything
 Work with others
 Open Source ethos = transparency
and openness
 Pass on skills / teach others

I’m an avid self-tracker and fan of
sensors!
Images: Rain Ashford

I use all sorts of sensors…
EEG (Electroencephalography), GSR (Galvanic Skin Response), magnometer, temperature,
proximity, light, movement, barometric (temp, altitude, pressure)
Images: Sensors: Seeed Studio & Sparkfun, MindWave Mobile, Rain Ashford

…I enjoy incorporating the technology
into the design

Soldering whilst wearing Necomimi brainwave cat ears
I’m interested in…
 Social interaction – formal and informal
events where one is put on the spot/
excruciating circumstances: networking,
bars, clubs, meet ups, introductions,
conferences, etc.
Building multi-sensor wearables which
output data on the wearer’s physiological
signs comprised of various components
such as:
 a logging device
 sensors – tracking physiological signs:
EEG, GSR, heart rate, accelerometer,
temperature, etc.
 Actuators
 C code / algorithms
To be…
 Visually reactive
 Sonically reactive
 Might record sound / display feedback
from user
 camera

Baroesque Barometric Skirt

Baroesque Barometric Skirt: pattern & sewing

Baroesque Barometric Skirt: design & painting
Influences: Japanese painting / Okami game characters

Baroesque Barometric Skirt: circuit prototyping

Baroesque Barometric Skirt: breadboard to stripboard

Baroesque Barometric Skirt: detachable electronics apron

Sensors:
 Pressure
 Altitude
 Environment temp
 My temp
°C (Celcius), Pa (Pascal) and m (meter)

Displays environmental & physiological data °C (Celcius), Pa (Pascal) and m (meter)
(Low) Blue / Cyan / White / Green / Yellow / Magenta / Red (High)

Displays environmental & physiological data °C (Celcius),
Pa (Pascal) and m (meter)
Baroesque Barometric Skirt: Code

Displays environmental & physiological data °C
(Celcius), Pa (Pascal) and m (meter)Baroesque Barometric Skirt: data

Baroesque Barometric Skirt: Challenges
 Design of skirt
 Choice of fabric
 Weight of components
 Batteries: weight & longevity
 Design of code / algorithm
 Washability
 Design of circuitry & craft of electronics
 Flexibility of RGB LED strip
 Extraction & visualisation of meaningful data
 Aesthetics of garment & electronics
Image: Rain Ashford

Necomimi brainwave cat ears
..practicing manipulating concentration / meditation
Working with EEG (Electroencephalography)

NeuroSky Mindwave Mobile headset

EEG bar-graph prototyping

EEG LED matrix prototyping

EEG Visualising Pendant

EEG Visualising Data Pendant: Challenges
 Finding info on a proprietary device (skant in
2012)
 Design of code / algorithm
 Design of circuitry & craft of electronics
 Reliability of data via Bluetooth
 Form factor for a necklace
 How & what to visualise
 Weight of components
 Batteries: weight & longevity
 Extraction & visualisation of meaningful data
 Aesthetics of necklace & components
 Who is this for?
Image: Rain Ashford

Thank you for your attention!
@Rainycat
http://rainycatz.wordpress.com
Rain Ashford 2013

On Wearable Technology, Makers and Making

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