A textile fiber is able to detect its level of stretching or compression and then adapts, like a muscle, to force us to adopt a more suitable posture and breathing.
- Certain trades or certain physical conditions require breathing work
- The inventors of this technology believe it could be used to recover from a respiratory illness, such as Covid-19.
What if a garment allowed us to breathe better? It’s the bet of a team from the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology: she has designed a textile fiber that allows us to work on our breathing. This innovative material is used to make a garment that itself senses whether it is compressed or stretched, then provides tactile feedback in the form of pressure, vibration or stretch to better control breathing.
How do fibers work?
Multilayer fibers contain a channel through which a fluid flows in the center. This liquid allows the material to act like an artificial muscle. But fibers also contain stretch sensors that can detect and measure their degree of stretch. In total, they contain five layers: the innermost fluid channel, a silicone-based elastomeric tube to contain it, a stretchy soft sensor that senses strain, a stretchy braided polymer that controls the outer dimensions of the fiber, and a non-stretch filament that provides a mechanical constraint on stretchability. All of this technology fits into a standard-size yarn, fine and flexible enough to be sewn, woven or knitted using machines.
Essays with an opera singer
To test its effectiveness, the researchers created a garment for opera singers. The researchers asked the singer to sing while wearing the garment made from their robotic fibers and recorded data from sensors woven into the garment. Then they translated this information, generating tactile feedback, to encourage him to adapt his posture and breathing patterns. “We don’t know very well what muscles we use and what the physiology of breathing consists of”, explains the lead author of the research, Kilic Afsar. The fiber created allows different muscle groups to be monitored as the wearer inhales and exhales, and tactile feedback helps stimulate the activation of each muscle group.
What are the possible applications?
“Everyone must breathe, recalls Hiroshi Ishii, one of the authors of this study. Breathing has a major impact on productivity, confidence and performance” According to him, good breathing can also help recover properly after an operation or depression. Before developing its applications, the researcher and his team intend to improve the system they have developed, in order to make it even more In the coming months, a new trial must be carried out with an amateur singer, then with choreographers and dancers.
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