Smart Clothing and Athletics: A future love story?
From jackets that tell you where your Uber is to yoga pants that take care of your workout routine; from casuals that beep when you stay in the sun for a little too long to smart socks that detect fevers in baby Josh, clothing has come a long way since the dawn of civilization. Indeed, Smart Clothing has found use in nearly all walks of life, may it be healthcare, sport, or leisurewear.
In this article, we will explore how this new trend in technology enhances the best athletes and extreme sports enthusiasts of tomorrow.
WHAT MATERIALS WILL BE USED?
Any textile, sporting or otherwise, must be made of fibers, yarn, fabric, coatings, et cetera. Also, for any electronic component to operate, we need fibers that conduct electricity. Textile materials that can satisfy a combination of these requirements are called E-textiles. They consist of either natural or threaded conductive fibers. An amalgamation of conducting and insulating fibers can generate many different structures.
PERFORMANCE ENHANCEMENT USING SMART CLOTHING
Taking inspiration from nature, slight adjustments can be made to our sportswear to improve performance and reduce drag in sports like cycling and swimming. For example, the Speedo FastSkin- whose image is given below, has slight dimples on the sides, resembling a shark’s skin, to reduce drag while swimming. The wearer can also complete three times their average distance per stroke.
COMFORT IN EXTREME CONDITIONS
In the case of extreme sports, where conditions can be quite harsh on athletes, smart clothing can help. Phase Change Materials(PCM) are a class of materials that respond to any external changes in temperature, by absorbing or releasing latent heat, working at their melting point temperature. Suits made out of PCMs thus create thermoregulatory effects around the human body during rigorous workouts and help athletes to perform at their best.
KINEMATIC MONITORING IN SPORTS
Athletes need regular monitoring of top speed, stamina, match fitness, and other stats so that their coaches can find the best way to use their physical assets. Kinematic analysis can be done by the use of body-worn accelerometers attached to the chest of a smart t-shirt to monitor activity, balance, and gait. Multiple accelerometers or inertial systems can be integrated into a suit with a motion capture system.
In conclusion, smart clothing provides a safer solution to monitor athletic performance for both medicinal and research purposes. Smart clothing can be used in extreme environments to enable data collection and provide critical information regarding injury prevention and training support without affecting athletic performance.
Just like the inception of any other technology, this technological gift comes with a little caveat: they’re too expensive for a normal human being. But for top athletes, it’s just the cost of doing business. So, don’t be surprised to see sportsmen romp up with sleeves that monitor their pulse and speed in forthcoming editions of the Olympic games.
References:
Scataglini, Sofia & Moorhead, Alex & Feletti, Francesco. (2020). A Systematic Review of Smart Clothing in Sports: possible Applications to Extreme Sports. Muscle Ligaments and Tendons Journal. Vol. 10. 10.32098/mltj.02.2020.19.
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