The world keeps changing every day at the speed of light and so does fashion. Fashion designers over the years have started clubbing together wearable technology. News Today brings you some of the major developments that redefined the way we look.
Hands–free
When we wear shoes, it is quite frustrating to tie our shoelace. But what if there is a technology which could help you tie your shoelace on its own. Nike grabbed the headlines 17 January when it brought out Nike Adapt BB, shoes without laces that you can tighten or loosen by using an app. The shoes use a power-lacing system, called Fit Adapt, that allows the wearer to adjust to the perfect fit, either manually or digitally. A motor and gear train tighten or loosen based on the requirements of your foot. The shoe is targeted at athletes. It’s essential for the athlete to swiftly adapt to the best possible fit by loosening his shoes to increase blood flow and tightening it again for performance. Athletes can either rely on their own feel or the technology to manage.
Human chameleon
Imagine if you had the power to change the colour of the shirt you are wearing, say, red into black. Smart fabric has been in development for the past few years. Researchers have found ways to your outfit’s colour with the press of a button on an app. The University of Central Florida is taking wearables to the next level with a new colour-changing fabric they call ‘ChroMorphous’ – which can be operated by an app. This battery-powered fabric physically changes colour when turned on. The tech is woven throughout the fabric, using threads that incorporate micro-wires and colour-changing pigments. Researchers are embroidering lightweight, washable antennas into clothing.
Energy wear
Gone are the days when your handbags could only carry your essentials likes money, phone, cards or makeup kit. Researchers have designed handbags and shoes that can charge your phone. Thanks to solar, the technology has been wedged into the fabric and you wouldn’t know that you are carrying a portable power source.
Samsung launched a handbag called ‘Sol Bag’. The slim clutch, which is roughly the size of an iPad, has been designed to charge your phone or your tablet on the go. The Sol Bag’s key standout feature is the solar panels located on the outside of the bag. They have been designed to look like a stylish pattern on the clutch, which is great, because it is a design that brings a new normal to world of wearables.