A Hong Kong research team has succeeded in making fabric that can change color by combining polymer optical fibers and artificial intelligence technology. They believe that the smart textile, which was first introduced at Milan Fashion Week earlier this year, can make the fashion industry more inclusive and sustainable.
“I will have every color in my favorite clothes” may become a saying of the past thanks to this color-changing fabric, developed by a team of researchers in Hong Kong.
This clothing material is equipped with a small camera, and utilizes artificial intelligence technology to produce a series of colored illuminations, ranging from dark purple, to bright red.
This smart textile was showcased at Milan Fashion Week earlier this year, and the team that developed it believes it can push the fashion industry towards a more inclusive, sustainable and bright future.
Professor Jeanne Tan from the School of Fashion and Textiles at Hong Kong Polytechnic University poses for a photo with a ‘BOLT SWEATER’ made from a Smart Textile system developed by AiDLab in Hong Kong, China, 5 June, 2023. (REUTERS/Joyce Zhou)
Jeanne Tan is a member of the team developing smart textiles at the Laboratory for Artificial Intelligence in Design, or AiDLab, based in Hong Kong. He emphasized that their research focuses on integrating artificial intelligence technology with design.
“So we use polymer optical fibers with textile-based threads. To the touch, this material is like ordinary knitted fabric. “So it’s actually very subtle,” he said.
This fabric is not only comfortable, but can also change color according to the user’s simple movements. For example, a thumbs up triggers dark blue, a heart-shaped finger gesture triggers pink, and a finger gesture that implies ‘OK’ triggers jewel green illumination.
The latest feature even allows the wearer to choose colors from photos on their phone and project them onto fabric.
A researcher demonstrates the Smart Textile feature, which allows wearers to extract colors using cell phone photos and project them onto the material, at their laboratory in Hong Kong, China, June 5, 2023. (REUTERS/Joyce Zhou)
Miffy Yu, another researcher, said their work supports sustainable fashion.
“When you buy clothes in a style you like, you can change the color of the clothes because of this innovative material. This means that you only need to buy one piece of clothing, but that clothing can change color. By wearing this fabric, you will not act like other young people who might buy all the colors of the clothing styles they like. “When they no longer like the node, they often throw away all their clothes, so they become trash,” he commented.
AiDLab hopes that one day this technology can be commercialized. Currently these smart textiles are only displayed in shopping malls and a few other locations in Hong Kong. (ab/uh)