Joanna Berzowska shares her work

[gallery] Joanna Berzowska of XS Labs shares her recent (and beautifully inspiring) catalogue that talks about her practice, design research methods in wearable technology and illustrates some of her gorgeous projects. Thank you for sharing Joanna! For all you wearable technology designers, it is definitely worth a read.

Download the PDF here.

Here's what she has to say about it:

I founded XS Labs in 2002, in my first year at Concordia University, and positioned it as a design research studio with a focus on innovation in electronic textiles and reactive garments. My interest in this field, however, did not originate from weaving, fashion design, or even fiber arts. It emerged from a concern with the lack of softness in HCI (Human Computer Interaction) and the desire to explore a wider range of material properties in the development of physical interfaces.

While a student at the MIT Media Lab in the mid 1990’s, I was drawn to electronic textiles for their ability to conform to the human body and their potential for bringing softness to physical interfaces. The work I was conducting in HCI focused on tangible interaction and involved the manipulation of physical objects with the human hand. I anticipated that electronic textiles would allow us to expand the realm of physical interaction into a wearable context and to explore the boundaries of what I call “beyond the wrist” interaction.

While Mark Weiser’s prophetic vision of Ubiquitous Computing has largely become reality, and computing technology is truly receding into the background of our awareness, [1] our relationship to materiality and design practices needs to evolve. The research directions that shape the field of HCI are still too often predicated on traditional definitions of computers and their intended uses. They do not consider the broad range of computational expression, technologies, and materials available to designers today.

In recent history, a scientific revolution has been redefining our fundamental design methods. [2] Materials such as conductive fibers, active inks, photoelectrics, and shape–memory alloys promise to shape new design forms and new experiences that will redefine our relationship with materiality and with technology. [3] Our design philosophy at XS Labs focuses on the use of these transitive materials and technologies as fundamental design elements.

The projects at XS Labs often demonstrate a preoccupation with — and a resistance to — task–based, utilitarian definitions of functionality in HCI. Our definition of function simultaneously looks at the materiality and the magic of computing technologies; it incorporates the concepts of beauty and pleasure. We are particularly concerned with the exploration of interactive forms that emphasize the natural expressive qualities of transitive materials. We focus on the aesthetics of interaction, which compels us to interrogate and to re–contextualize the materials themselves. The interaction narratives function as entry points to question some of the fundamental assumptions we make about the technologies and the materials that we deploy in our designs.

A core component of our research at XS Labs involves the development of enabling technologies, methods, and materials — in the form of soft electronic circuits and composite fibers — as well as the exploration of the expressive potential of soft reactive structures. Many of our electronic textile innovations are informed by the technical and the cultural history of how textiles have been made for generations — weaving, stitching, embroidery, knitting, beading, or quilting — but use a range of materials with different electro–mechanical properties. We consider the soft, playful, and magical aspects of these materials, so as to better adapt to the contours of the human body and the complexities of human needs and desires. Our approach often engages subtle elements of the absurd, the perverse, and the transgressive. We construct narratives that involve dark humor and romanticism as a way to drive design innovation. These integrative approaches allow us to construct composite textiles with complex functionality and sophisticated behaviors.

Joanna Berzowska 2010

1. Weiser, Mark. “The Computer for the Twenty-First Century.” Scientific American Sept. 1991: 94-104. Print.

2. Addington, Michelle, and L. Daniel Schodek. Smart Materials and New Technologies for the Architecture and Design Professions, London: Elsevier, 2005. Print.

3. Coelho, Marcelo, Sajid Sadi, Pattie Maes, Neri Oxman, and Joanna Berzowska. Transitive Materials: Towards an Integrated Approach to Material Technology. Proc. of the 9th International Conference on Ubiquitous Computing. Innsbruck, Austria, 2007.

modwells: Personal modules for wellness

[gallery] I've been working on another wearable technology project via Artefact. The project is focused on the topic of healthcare and takes an integrated approach to the design that combines technology garments, industrial design and software.  Here's an update on the project, the concept, and where I'm at with it, which is only scratching the surface of the many possibilities of this platform. I would love to hear your thoughts!

Healthcare today

Today there is a significant conversation around health, wellness and healthcare experiences and an equal amount of investment happening in the consumer arena. So, I put on my thinking cap and started asking a few questions around this topic:

  • How can we motivate people to live a healthier lifestyle?
  • How can we engage people more in preventative care, and how can we increase their health awareness?
  • How can we teach people how to stay healthy?
  • How can we make health data more accessible?
  • How can a personal health product adjust to the needs of different people? There are many systems which track a single set of data very well, but nothing that adapts to the personal needs of people and tracks multiple data combinations.
  • How can this be done in a way that inspires us to want to use it and wear it?

I've been dissecting these questions into bite-sized chunks and came up with the following platform solution (read about some of the research findings on the Artefact website here):

modwells: Personal modules for wellness

The modwells system is a platform that delivers a consumer-focused healthcare experience integrated into your daily life. It improves your physical and emotional health, and enhances your quality of life. The system respects the unique health and wellbeing needs of each user and accommodates those needs through a customizable solution that blurs the line between traditional medical products and consumer products. The system consists of:

  • Mods: a collection of input and output sensors that collect and assess health data, provide basic feedback and alerts.
  • Trestle: A trestle that presents data and interaction. The trestle also recharges the mods wirelessly.
  • Accessories: A collection of optional accessories that extend the mod’s capabilities. In this case, it is a body positioning garment.
  • A cross-platform software application: enables users to work with their personal health data, manage goals, share experiences with friends and connect with healthcare professionals

Continue reading on the artefact website ...

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Umi Hotaru Dress

[gallery] With all the buzz lately around gorgeous light-up couture, here's a lovely dress made of chiffon, tulle and two strings of LED lights called the Umi Hotaru Dress. And as an added bonus, you can pick up the pattern and make it yourself. Here's what the designer says about it:

The dress is based on a structure in Tokyo Bay called Umi Hotaru, or Firefly of the Sea. it was entered in my alma mater’s annual alumni show. I worked on this dress with my boyfriend who also graduated from the same school, but as an Engineer. We both designed the dress and I made the pattern and constructed dress. It’s made of chiffon and tulle and has two strings of solar powered LED lights wired in. The purse the holds the solar panels to charge the LEDs.

Continue reading and get the pattern at BurdaStyle.

Zip: Control your music

[gallery] Alas, a new electricfoxy project!

Zip is a garment that explores the aesthetics and interaction of wearable technology solutions that have built-in music controls. There are many products on the market today ranging from snowboard jackets to hoodies that allow you to connect your music player and control it using buttons integrated into the textiles. However, most of the solutions simply take the music player's hardware controls and replicate them on the sleeve or inside the lapel using eTextiles. Although still innovative, Zip investigates this further by:

Garment interactions Rather than replicating hardware controls into soft textiles, Zip also considers some of our basic garment mechanics and integrates the controls into the gestures that we already perform with our clothing.

Aesthetics Rather than simply attaching technology to clothing or hiding it in pockets, Zip considers the aesthetics of the technology, exposes it, and uses it as part of the overall styling of the garment.

Manufacturing We are starting to see more wearable technology enter the public's eye, yet producing tech garments is still one of the major road blockers due to high cost, lack of streamlined manufacturing processes and a variety of other variables. Zip is designed to be manufactured with both the pattern and ciruit design aimed for production.

Go to the project site to read all about it and watch the video.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this project!

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Sprint and BodyMedia team up

This week, Sprint, announced a partnership with BodyMedia, a company that develops wearable fitness technologies, which will expand the wireless carrier’s product portfolio to include embedded devices. BodyMedia develops body monitoring and weight-management systems, and currently offers several devices that track activity levels, calories burned, and sleep patterns, all in an effort to help consumers lead healthier lives.

The companies say Sprint will be the exclusive wireless provider for BodyMedia’s new line of FIT Armbands with embedded wireless capabilities, as well as the company’s future wearable body monitors.

Continue reading on Connected World Image from 7Gadgets