The class Wearable and Soft Interactions is now in it’s third semester. Each semester the students have been busy with assignments that document and report on electronic components and techniques that are used while building their wearable and e-textile projects.
This class was originally developed for the Interaction Design department at California College of the Arts (CCA) located in the Bay Area. It’s now offered to all disciplines through CCA’s UDIST program. The class focuses on technology that can be embedded and designed for fabrics, wearable and flexible projects. Some of the topics explored are introduction to soft circuits, the wearable market today, history of wearable technology and pertinent rapid prototyping approaches.
There are two assignments that the students receive while taking this class: the Component Report and the Technique Report. Both are inspired by the Component Report assigned to students who take the Physical Computing class while at NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program.
The Component Report is assigned to further the student’s understanding of the research process on a specific electronic component, including how to find the datasheet and testing the sensor’s behavior.
The Technique Report is assigned to shine light on specific and novel methods that students learn and develop while they prototype and craft their wearables and e-textiles in class.
These both teach that skill sharing is important to the DIY and academic community, giving back by posting the student’s work as public, while enriching the student’s abilities during their creation. As the instructor, I’ve started compiling the reports on a class website, most of them are PDFs and some are Instructables which are formatted as step-by-step instructions.
Some examples of technique reports:
Using Conductive Thread as Heating Element with Thermochromic Ink
Creating Origami Fabric Panels
Conductive Thread Touch Sensor
Use an Arduinio Uno as MIDI Controller
Conductive Thread Touch Switches
Smocking with Glue
Some components that have been reported on:
ADXL345 accelerometer breakout board
Infrared Sensor – #GP2Y0A02YK0F
Infrared Thermometer – MLX90614
MindWave EEG Brainwave Headset
While the list is still being added, I invite the community to explore and learn from the all the student’s creative and hard work.
Class website: www.wearable-interactions.com.
Where you can find the Component Reports and the Technique Reports.
Feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have or just to talk shop.
