• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.733-745
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• 2016

This paper provides a review of wearable textile strain sensors that can measure the deformation of the body surface according to the movements of the wearer. In previous studies, the requirements of textile strain sensors, materials and fabrication methods, as well as the principle of the strain sensing according to sensor structures were understood; furthermore, the factors that affect the sensing performance were critically reviewed and application studies were examined. Textile strain sensors should be able to show piezoresistive effects with consistent resistance-extension in response to the extensional deformations that are repeated when they are worn. Textile strain sensors with piezoresistivity are typically made using conductive yarn knit structures or carbon-based fillers or conducting polymer filler composite materials. For the accuracy and reliability of textile strain sensors, fabrication technologies that would minimize deformation hysteresis should be developed and processes to complement and analyze sensing results based on accurate understanding of the sensors' resistance-strain behavior are necessary. Since light-weighted, flexible, and highly elastic textile strain sensors can be worn by users without any inconvenience so that to enable the users to continuously collect data related to body movements, textile strain sensors are expected to become the core of human interface technologies with a wide range of applications in diverse areas.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.697-707
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• 2019

This review paper deals with materials, classification, and a current article investigation on smart textile sensors for wearable vital signs monitoring (WVSM). Smart textile sensors can lose electrical conductivity during vital signs monitoring when applying them to clothing. Because they should have to endure severe conditions (bending, folding, and distortion) when wearing. Imparting electrical conductivity for application is a critical consideration when manufacturing smart textile sensors. Smart textile sensors fabricate by utilizing electro-conductive materials such as metals, allotrope of carbon, and intrinsically conductive polymers (ICPs). It classifies as performance level, fabric structure, intrinsic/extrinsic modification, and sensing mechanism. The classification of smart textile sensors by sensing mechanism includes pressure/force sensors, strain sensors, electrodes, optical sensors, biosensors, and temperature/humidity sensors. In the previous study, pressure/force sensors perform well despite the small capacitance changes of 1-2 pF. Strain sensors work reliably at 1 ㏀/cm or lower. Electrodes require an electrical resistance of less than 10 Ω/cm. Optical sensors using plastic optical fibers (POF) coupled with light sources need light in-coupling efficiency values that are over 40%. Biosensors can quantify by wicking rate and/or colorimetry as the reactivity between the bioreceptor and transducer. Temperature/humidity sensors require actuating triggers that show the flap opening of shape memory polymer or with a color-changing time of thermochromic pigment lower than 17 seconds.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.186-191
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• 2018

Smart textile industries have been precipitously developed and extended to electronic textiles and wearable devices in recent years. In particular, owing to an increasingly aging society, the elderly healthcare field has been highlighted in the smart device industries, and pressure sensors can be utilized in various elderly healthcare products such as flooring, mattress, and vital-sign measuring devices. Furthermore, elderly healthcare products need to be more lightweight and flexible. To fulfill those needs, textile-based pressure sensors is considered to be an attractive solution. In this research, to apply a textile to the second layer using a pressure sensing device, a novel type of conductive textile was fabricated using vapor phase polymerization of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT). Vapor phase polymerization is suitable for preparing the conductive textile because the reaction can be controlled simply under various conditions and does not need high-temperature processing. The morphology of the obtained PEDOT-conductive textile was observed through the Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM). Moreover, the resistance was measured using an ohmmeter and was confirmed to be adjustable to various resistance ranges depending on the concentration of the oxidant solution and polymerization conditions. A 3-layer 81-point multi-pressure sensor was fabricated using the PEDOT-conductive textile prepared herein. A 3D-viewer program was developed to evaluate the sensitivity and multi-pressure recognition of the textile-based multi-pressure sensor. Finally, we confirmed the possibility that PEDOT-conductive textiles could be utilized by pressure sensors.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.145-152
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• 2014

The usage of textile-based sensors has increased due to their many advantages (compared to IT sensors) when applied to body assessment and comfort. Textile-based sensors have different detecting factors such as pressure, voltage, current and capacitance to investigate the characteristics. In this study, textile-based sensor fabrics with sheath-core type conductive yarns were produced and the relationship between capacitance changes and applied load was investigated. The physical and electric properties of textile-based sensor fabrics were also investigated under various laminating conditions. A textile based pressure sensor that uses a sheath-core conductive yarn to ensure the stability of the pressure sensor in the textile-based sensor (the physical structure of the reaction characteristic of the capacitance) is important for the stability of the initial value of the initial capacitance value outside the characteristic of the textile structural environment. In addition, a textile based sensor is displaced relative to the initial value of the capacitance change according to pressure changes in the capacitance value of the sensor due to the fineness of the high risk of noise generation. Changing the physical structure of the fabric through the sensor characteristic of the pressure sensor via the noise generating element of laminating (temperature, humidity, and static electricity) to cut off the voltage output element to improve the data reliability could be secured.

• Textile Coloration and Finishing
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.65-76
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• 2019

A multi-point touch input sensor having different sizes or different capacitance touch points connected by only one pair of signal transmission lines was fabricated using a polyimide film coated with a thin copper plate. The capacitance increases with the decrease in the number of sheets of fabric spacers placed between the two sheets of the polyimide film. Therefore, the touch input sensor could be manufactured without fabric spacers, which was possible by the action of the polyimide film as a dielectric material in the capacitor. On the multi-point touch sensor, higher capacitance was obtained when pressing wider-area touch points with 10mm to 25mm diameter on average. However, the capacitance of a system comprising two sheets of touch sensors was considerably low, causing a serious overlap of the capacitance values according to the data collected from the reliability test. Although the capacitance values could be increased by stacking several sheets of touch sensors, the overlap of data was still observed. After reducing the size of all touch points to 10mm and stacking up to eight sheets of sensors, reliable and consistent capacitance data was obtained. Five different capacitance signals could be induced in the sensors by pushing touch points simultaneously.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.397-402
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• 2018

Proper seat design is critical to the safety, comfort, and ergonomics of automotive driver's seats. To ensure effective seat design, quantitative methods should be used to evaluate the characteristics of automotive seats. This paper presents a system that is capable of simultaneously monitoring body pressure distribution and surface deformation in a textile material. In this study, a textile-based capacitive sensor was used to detect the body pressure distribution in an automotive seat. In addition, a strain gauge sensor was used to detect the degree of curvature deformation due to high-pressure points. The textile-based capacitive sensor was fabricated from the conductive fabric and a polyurethane insulator with a high signal-to-noise ratio. The strain gauge sensor was attached on the guiding film to maximize the effect of its deformation due to bending. Ten pressure sensors were placed symmetrically in the hip area and six strain gauge sensors were distributed on both sides of the seat cushion. A readout circuit monitored the absolute and relative values from the sensors in realtime, and the results were displayed as a color map. Moreover, we verified the proposed system for quantifying the body pressure and fabric deformation by studying 18 participants who performed three predefined postures. The proposed system showed desirable results and is expected to improve seat safety and comfort when applied to the design of various seat types. Moreover, the proposed system will provide analytical criteria in the design and durability testing of automotive seats.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Dyers and Finishers Conference
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• 2011.03a
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• pp.45-45
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• 2011

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Dyers and Finishers Conference
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• 2010.03a
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• pp.108-108
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• 2010

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.577-592
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• 2023

In this study, nanofiber-based textile sensors were developed for motion detection and monitoring. Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) nanofibers containing zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles and silver nanowires (AgNW) were fabricated using electrospinning. PVDF was chosen as a piezoelectric polymer, zinc oxide as a piezoelectric ceramic, and AgNW as a metal to improve electric conductivity. The PVDF/ZnO/AgNW nanocomposite fibers were used to develop a textile sensor, which was then incorporated into an elbow band to develop a wearable smart band. Changes in the output voltage and peak-to-peak voltage (V_p-p) generated by the joint's flexion and extension were investigated using a dummy elbow. The β-phase crystallinity of pure PVDF nanofibers was 58% when analyzed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy; however, the β-phase crystallinity increased to 70% in PVDF nanofibers containing ZnO and to 78% in PVDF nanocomposite fibers containing both ZnO and AgNW. The textile sensor's output voltage values varied with joint-bending angle; upon increasing the joint angle from 45° to 90° to 150°, the V_p-p value increased from 0.321 V_p-p to 0.542 V_p-p to 0.660 V_p-p respectively. This suggests that the textile sensor can be used to detect and monitor body movements.

• Polymer Science and Technology
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.282-289
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• 2015