Smart textiles used in fever-detecting hat

January 25, 2023

Category: FASHION ACCESSORIES

Country: United States

Written by Chris Remington
Published: 23 January 2023

BATON ROUGE – An academic at Louisiana State University (LSU) has developed a woolly hat for infants that reportedly changes colour based on body temperature.

Sibei Xia, an assistant professor at LSU’s Department of Textiles, Apparel Design and Merchandising, used thermochromic yarn – which changes colour when exposed to heat - during the knitting process to gauge whether it could be a barometer of whether a baby has a fever.

“If the new-born’s temperature goes really high, it’s going to change the hat to a beige colour so that we don’t have to necessarily measure the temperature that often or use other technologies to monitor temperature,” Xia said.

With investment from the Provost’s Fund for Innovation in Research, the academic and her team believe there’s scope to refine the smart clothing solution – which could minimise the number of check-ups parents conduct.

For example, the proof-of-concept was manufactured using one of two flatback knitting machines on campus, but the researchers are convinced that a more versatile technology might yield greater design choices.

It’s said that the knitting structure, patterns and tension applied can all impact the precision of the hat’s response to heat.

“We are hoping that by implementing other structure variations and colour variations, it will create the linear range between 37.5oC to 38.5oC,” Xia said.

In infants, a temperature of 37.5oC — about 99.5 degrees Fahrenheit — or higher is considered a fever.

To supplement further research, the academics are hopeful that they can secure a ‘thermomanikin’ – a dummy capable of simulating the process of a child developing a fever.

This could then be leveraged in the production of other ‘smart garments’ made using the same design principles.

“I’m very fascinated by the technology and all the products that can be made from the knitting machines,” the assistant professor said.

“If we broadcast the technology, we will have a lot of creative ideas, and then we could work collaboratively for potential applications, not only in functionality, such as wearable technology, but also creative design.”

Courtesy: https://www.tevonews.com/research-news/3354-smart-textiles-used-in-fever-detecting-hat