This is a old brief that was initialy handed in as a written assignment. Since then I have changed the topic for my dissertation, but anyone interested in Smart Clothing might find this useful -

Reading a Research Paper

Smart or Intelligent Clothing are articles of clothing, footwear or accessories that feature micro-electronic sensors which gather, communicate and output usage and performance data. Electronic sensing and computing technology is integrated into clothing with minimal to no visual indicators of the technology.

“Electronics and fashion experts agree that Smart Clothing represents the future of the two areas” (Baurley, 2003). But at present, limited fashion and high prices mean Smart clothes are a small niche market.


What is the motivation for the work (commercial, exploratory, educational)?

The research paper I decided to analyses is called “Optimizing Multidisciplinary Contributions for the Smart Clothing Development Process.” This paper focuses on how to achieve a greater integration of electronic technology and fashion design, so more fully integrated designs can be realised. The paper goes about this by conducting Background Research; which comprises of a literature review, lessons learned from previous projects & a series of interviews with key professionals.

In the Literature review, it is explained that there is a need to improve profitability in order to cover the development costs. This means in order “to gain social acceptance, a new design strategy is required (Edwards, 2003). Therefore in the field of Smart Clothing, the ability to shift perception and break from the past is critical for a radical innovation.

Designers must break the ‘pre-existing pattern,’ or what is also known as the Creative boundary. De Bono (2000) explains that “All information is perceived, recognised, analyzed and organised due to the ‘routine perception track’ which was set up by previous experiences. The brain can only see what it is prepared to see.” In this manner, all information, no matter how new or old, is explained by the known theory and fashioned to support that theory. In order to breakthrough the existing boundary, a new perspective is required.

This point is emphasised in the summary of lessons from previous projects, where a researched worked with two supervisors from both fields (electronics & fashion). The final result was a far from integrated design, with the problem lying in finding symmetry between fashion expression and a functional approach. In this instance it was difficult for one person to balance the inputs from two areas, it must be even harder for multidisciplinary teams.

Concluding the background research is a series of interviews with ten interviewees, who were chosen based on their experience & expertise. Here it was noted that problems occurred with communication and a language barrier exists between the two fields. Furthermore, proximity between both fields is important. Having all required disciplines in one place allows a quick response to any problems that might arise.


The background research concluded that a fully integrated application was required to improve commercial potential. The extended study revealed that the current barrier was caused by established approaches and procedures.


What is the proposed solution (hypothesis, idea, design)?

Having identified several key issues in the Smart Clothing Development Process, the paper then goes on to formulate a practical method to address three issues: 1) How to achieve the optimum balanced contributions from all the participants; 2) How to integrate the differences of fashion design and electronics technology; and 3) overcome the creative boundary and create an integrated result.

This solution is formulated and expanded through the use of two case studies that were shown to break through the creative boundary, optimize multidisciplinary contributions and integrate the difference of high-tech and fashion sectors. Performance Sportswear & Smart Car (originally a collaboration between SMH & Mercedes Benz AG) were the two companies chosen.

Furthermore, interviews between two sportswear design educators, one sportswear design researcher & one member of the Swatch Product Management Department also took place. Finally, to establish even more clarity, a focus group which comprised of five product designers and another with five fashion designers also took place.

To analyse the information collected from the case studies & focus groups and to obligingly offer some answers to the three issues previously stated, the researcher used grounded theory methods. This involved deconstructing the information into categories in order to extrapolate the key issues, which are then reconstructed to provide new meaning and information. The information is thusly dissected by two methods ‘open coding’ and ‘axial coding,‘ before being reconstructed with all it’s potentially useful information being realised.


What evaluation of the proposed solution is presented?

The proposed solution is a series of strategies that should be adopted to optimize multidisciplinary contributions and help achieve more integrated products. These strategies are as follows:
1. Develop a clear goal & describe how multiple perspectives are evenly incorporated
2. Identify user requirements and clarify how multidisciplinary expertise can satisfy these needs.
3. Develop a context of the new product accordingly and ensure that every participant understands.
4. Define expected contributions of all the participants and establish the basis for a collaborative project.
5. Create a new framework based on the product context to encourage developers to think through and express their ideas in an integrated manner. In this way, fashion elements and technologies cannot be separated.
6. The new framework can be adopted by working closely with others. However, it is important that all disciplines challenge their established procedure and explore the new direction identified.


Did this evaluation convince you of the merit of the proposed solution?

The paper set forth to formulate a practical method to address three issues. A very strategic approach was adopted when collecting the vast array of data and analysing it. The proposed solutions have been carefully developed & I believe offer feasible solutions for the issues raised.


What are the paper’s contributions?

This paper has helped to identify several key strategies, providing a new framework for developers to work with. Firstly It identified several key issues in Smart Clothing Development processes and through a process of research & analysis, went on to introduced several feasible solutions.


What are the future directions for this research?

The next step in the evolution of Smart Clothes is partnership with clothing manufacturers & electronics companies so that items are designed from step one to incorporate and interact with technology. Investigation into what would make smart clothing more commercially viable & how to development the market sector would be a insightful direction for further research.

Versatility is crucial for a mass rollout of smart clothing. The cost of the technology has to come down to the point where it can be incorporated into a person's entire wardrobe, not just one item. Furthermore, fashion is also another consideration as people like to keep up with the latest trends.

The technology has to be easy to access and well integrated into the garment. Furthermore, I assume there must also be consideration about what information will be provide to inform the consumer about exactly he or she is buying.

One further query I have about the future of Smart Clothing is that in terms of data collection and analysis, is there not a possibility that it could become seen as an invasion of privacy?

References


Interactive and Experimental Design in Smart Textile products and Applications; proceedings of International Textile Design and Engineering Conference: Fibrous Assemblies at the Design and Engineering Interface, by Baurley, S. L. [Heriot-Watt University, UK. September 2004].

Wearable Computing Struggles for Social Acceptance; Technology: The Ultimate Fashion Item, by Edward C. [IEE Review. October 2003].

Serious Creativity: Using the Power of Lateral Thinking to Create New ideas, by De Bono, E. [London, Harper Collins Business, 2000].



Bibliography


Busayawan Airdate [Brunel University, UK].

Ray Holland [Brunel University, UK].

David Harrison [Brunel University, UK].



Other Journals read:

Smart Fibres, Fabrics and clothing, by Tao Xiaoping [Cambridge, England. Woodhead Publishing, 2001].

Fashion & Textiles: An Overview, by Gale, Colin, Kaur, Jasbir [Oxford, England. New York Berg Publishers, 2004].