PCB007 Magazine

PCB-Apr2018

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50 PCB007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2018 u Weft knitted, flat machine: intarsia, zones, striped, spacer, plaited, 3D structured (numerous types too many to list here), spacer (face, reverse, interior, any or all of the above) – Woven: warped, weft inserted, or both; jacquarded, brocade, striped, etc. – After processes: u Laminated u Coated u Embroidered u Printed These fabrications may or may not stretch, depending on their end uses. The conductivi- ty needs to stretch, flex, and recover with the fabric, and the performance in motion, all for a given amount of time based on the warranty and how that product is to be used and cared for (washing the elements, bending, flexing, stretching, etc.). What exciting things can be seen on the horizon? Here's a few that Connie described: • Energy harvesting [4] , Geotextiles and piezo-electric • Carpets and tiles that harvest energy [5,6] and piezoelectric agility in transportation [7] • Magnetostrictive fabrics that change shapes [8] • Conductive inks: wall coverings that act as speakers • Smart building materials like concrete [9] • Electro ooblecks that take the place of canes to assist in walking [10] : – Next generation will change color, emulate muscles, respond to light, heat, radiation and magnetic fields – Materials will become more lightweight with super strengths and multiple functions varying with their environment – Materials which can discriminate whether the loading is static or shock and can generate a large force against shock stresses (mega and micro shock absorbers) – Materials possessing self-repairing properties which can heal damage in due course of time (self-healing materials) – Materials that can be used in ultra-high temperatures by changing the composition through transformation (application in space shuttles which encounter high-temp in reentry to atmosphere) The E-Textiles Buzz Session at IPC APEX EXPO was very active with lively debate and discussions about a technology that may be new to electronics but is certainly something we should be aware of. IPC has established an e-textiles standards committee and is hosting an e-textiles workshop in September [11] . It will certainly be interesting to see how the integration of electronic and textile technolo- gy develops over the next several years. Us- ing just the automotive industry alone, Connie has described possible applications for ener- gy conservation, driver safety and driver com- fort. Both industries need to design for mis- haps such as your child (or yourself) spilling a milkshake on the seat of car without letting that impact the electronics. Learning how a textile engineer might approach that scenario has been eye-opening and I look forward to learning more about the textile industry and how electronics will play a role in future prod- uct development. PCB007 Figure 4: Connie Huffa at the E-Textiles Buzz Session at IPC APEX EXPO 2018.

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