GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Under the provisions of the regulations for the degree

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

on Wednesday, June 5, 2019

3:00 PM
in MRDC 3515

will be held the

DISSERTATION DEFENSE

for

Sungmee Park

"Textiles as a Meta-Wearable: Studies on Textiles as an Information Infrastructure"

Committee Members:

Prof. Sundaresan Jayaraman, Advisor, MSE

Prof. Preet Singh, MSE

Prof. Suresh Sitaraman, ME

Prof. Naresh Thadhani, MSE

Prof. Donggang Yao, MSE

Abstract:

Joseph Marie Jacquard (circa 1801) created the world’s first automatic binary information processor – the Jacquard mechanism. Since then, the significant advancements in sensing, computing, and communications technologies have given birth to the paradigm of pervasive information processing or “information processing on the go.” The primary objective of the research is to design and develop a personal wearable information infrastructure – the Wearable Motherboard – that would be comfortable like any garment and realize the paradigm of “fabric is the computer.” Yet another objective is to demonstrate the versatility of the Wearable Motherboard paradigm through applications and develop the concept of textiles as a meta-wearable.

In this dissertation, a structured methodology for product design and development in a concurrent engineering environment has been proposed. A novel technology for creating a full-fashioned woven garment on a loom has been developed, which represents a pioneering contribution to textile engineering. The concept of “interconnections” in a textile structure has been proposed and technology developed to seamlessly route information from sensors or devices in any part of the fabric to another through the yarns in the fabric thus creating a flexible textile-based information infrastructure analogous to the traditional printed circuit board (PCB). This represents true convergence between electronics and textiles giving birth to the new field of electronic or “e-textiles.”

Real-world instantiations of the Wearable Motherboard – for physiological monitoring (medical, sports, and infants) and in-fabric information processing network – successfully demonstrated the versatility of the design and development methodology. The next generation Wearable Motherboard with integrated sensors and information infrastructure represents the successful realization of the meta-wearable paradigm. It is the bridging catalyst between the Internet of Things (IoT) and the Internet of People (IoP).