When it comes to wearable tech, it appears that new devices are being produced every day. One new piece of technology that is gaining some much deserved attention is a new stretchable and durable piece of electronics that researchers say could be fit into clothing in the near future. If these Japanese scientists can actually perfect what they are working on, it would appear that wearable tech’s focus would switch back to consumer designs from the direction it has been heading in the enterprise world.
The researchers, who are working jointly from the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) say the transistors they are creating are durable enough that they can even be laundered right along with clothing. If this comes to pass, it would mean applications like embedding the transistors in clothing in order to monitor health as well as location and rate of movement is all possible. It would seem as if these could also be the basis for such advanced uses such as synthetic skin covering for humanoid looking robots.
The difference between this particular kind of transistor and the ones that are currently on the market are rather obvious considering that current tech has been made from rather brittle materials such as metal. These new transistors are made of more supple materials including a rubber matrix and carbon nanotubes as well as a super strong conductive material that has already been used as a basis for non-volatile memory.
While this particular kind of technology isn’t one that is going to be mass developed just yet, it appears to be well on its way. This is also the kind of technology exhibitors and attendees are looking for when visiting events such as the Wearable Tech Expo in Las Vegas, going on now. The expo is showing off some of the world’s most advanced devices in this sector, and the kind of transistor that can be implanted and used in myriad ways would stand out even among that crowd.
Edited by Dominick Sorrentino
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