Commercially-made smart products from the American Manufacturing Innovation Center

Since the financial crisis in 2008, the US government has proposed that the economy should shift to a sustainable growth model, and revitalize manufacturing as an important means of stimulating economic growth, through the introduction of relevant policies, building a manufacturing innovation network, and increasing the basic elements of innovation. Investment, etc., support the development of manufacturing, especially advanced manufacturing.

Among them, the construction innovation network (NNMI, renamed Manufacturing USA in September 2016) is an entity that effectively carries the planning direction of the US advanced manufacturing innovation. The core is to overcome the gap between basic scientific research and commercial production in the process of transforming scientific and technological productivity into commercial value, that is, to improve the commercial transformation of innovative technologies.

Currently, Manufacturing USA has established 14 innovation institutes in different industrial technology fields. Two of them are closely related to the textile sector, namely the Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation Institute (IACMI) and the Advanced Functional Fabric Manufacturing Innovation Institute (AFFOA). The two innovation institutes have incorporated high-performance fibers and their composite materials and smart textile materials and textiles into the US advanced manufacturing innovation system, fully demonstrating the advanced textile materials and textiles in aerospace, medical health and textiles that change the future. The broad prospects and value of domain applications.

Among its many research results, AFFOA has launched two commercially available products. One is the first programmable smart backpack produced by JanSport, which is currently commercially available under the trade name LOOKs®. The backpack can set the backpack function through the smartphone. Scanning the backpack fabric through the mobile phone camera can identify different backpacks and obtain the information shared by the backpack holders, thus helping the students to better socialize on campus and teach the participants to participate more efficiently. . The smart fabric used in the backpack was developed by AFFOA scientists and manufactured by JanSport and Inman Mills.

The other product is the world's first fiber-based fabric communication system "Fabric LiFi" developed by BostonEngineering. This technology can "broadcast" audio and other data directly into photo-detecting fibers in a hat under LED lighting systems. Potential applications include: receiving and receiving in sports events based on language and preferences. Real-time commentary, high-precision positioning and navigation in indoor locations where GPS signals are not available, and critical locations such as hospitals, as well as increased nighttime safety (avoidance of collisions) by cycling and running enthusiasts.