A research group, led by Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, has come up with an ordinary silk thread, coated with a conductive plastic material, that shows promising properties for turning textiles into electricity generators.
Ongoing work on ‘textile muscles’ has been further strengthened as researchers develop haptic sleeves that give an extra boost during heavy lifting, enable ‘remote’ hugs, help the visually impaired navigate the urban environment, and also complement VR in gaming.