Smart Fabrics Without Electronics
Data Storage and Interaction using Magnetized Fabric
This paper enables data storage and interaction with smart fabric, without the need for onboard electronics or batteries. To do this, we present the frst smart fabric design that harnesses the ferromagnetic properties of conductive thread. Specifcally, we manipulate the polarity of magnetized fabric and encode different forms of data including 2D images and bit strings. These bits can be read by swiping a commodity smartphone across the fabric, using its inbuilt magnetometer. Our results show that magnetized fabric retains its data even after washing, drying and ironing. Using a glove made of magnetized fabric, we can also perform six gestures in front of a smartphone, with a classifcation accuracy of 90.1%. Finally, using magnetized thread, we create fashion accessories like necklaces, ties, wristbands and belts with data storage capabilities as well as enable authentication applications.
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Data Storage and Interaction using Magnetized Fabric
Justin Chan, Shyam GollakotaUIST, Oct. 2017 [PDF][PPT][BIBTEX]
FAQ
How quickly does your fabric get demagnetized.
We found that our patches lost 28% to 36% of their original field strength over a week. But regained their original field strength after being remagnetized. We note however, that our patches never get completely demagnetized. In fact, our conductive fabrics still retained a magnetic field even after several months.
How sensitive is your system to external magnetic fields.
Our system looks at relative, not absolute changes in magnetic field strength. So unless there is a strong moving permanent magnet close to our magnetometers, which is unlikely, the magnetic field produced by our cloth will be the dominant detected signal.
How does your approach compare to RFID
Our fabrics can be read using any off the shelf magnetometer, and most smartphones are equipped with magnetometers. On the other hand, there are many variants of RFID tags that operate across the 120kHz - 10GHz band. Each type of tag can only be read with a specialized reader that communicates on the exact same frequency, adheres to the same ISO/IEC 18000 standards and is compatible with any manufacturer-specific protocols.
RFID readers can cost hundreds to thousands of dollars. Magnetometers are as cheap as $0.78, 10000x cheaper than some RFID readers. Each magnetized fabric tag cost < $0.17. This is competitive with RFID tag prices.
Does your gesture recognition system only work with a glove?