Thermal Technologies On Show At Performance Days

Event & Conferences

Thermal Technologies On Show At Performance Days

Performance Days presented thermal technologies at the Performance Forum during the recently concluded edition of the fair. Special attention is given to the fabrics equipped with heating elements. They promise great potential for new business segments, while also presenting manufacturers with several challenges. The opportunities and risks were the subject of a lecture by attorney Dr. Alexander Duisberg of Bird&Bird LLP.

In the age of apps and smartphones, where modern technologies make our lives easier and we have the ability to control our household appliances from remote distances, the development of apparel, which can take on intelligent functions, is long overdue. In particular, great innovation has taken place recently in the field of active heating systems. New technologies not only provide body heat retention, but also generate additional heat by means of chemical or physical processes. The current focus in the manufacture of warming textiles is on electrical heat through resistance. The Performance Days highlighted three different and interesting approaches.

Lenzing: Warming soft knits with natural fibres

Fibre manufacturer Lenzing (Tencel) has developed an innovative 3D knitting process in cooperation with the KnitWarm Company, which produces a particularly soft, skin-friendly fabric with the Tencel conductive yarns. The conductive yarns heat up when connected to an electrical source. Small pushbutton controls close the circuit and connect the cable with the fabric. The heat intensity can be adjusted between three settings by means of these controls. The system is powered by a rechargeable external electrical source (5V/2A). The fabric is washable and the conductive yarns are not subject to corrosion, but all power supplying cables must be removed prior to washing. The conductive fabric can be applied over the entire surface or sewn on as panels to cover specific areas.

Schoeller: Warm Softshell "by the meter"

Schoeller Textiles is going a step further with its latest E-Soft-Shell. This softshell material is coated with conductive yarn, and can even be custom-cut and supplied by the meter without losing any of its thermal functions. This makes the fabric interesting for all types of commercial applications, with savings on material in production. Schoeller is currently working on woven and knitted fabrics with conductive materials or components, along with sensors in or on the surface of the textiles, both as stretch or non-stretch variants. In addition to its thermal physical components, the new E-Soft-Shell is equipped with Schoeller's highly functional Corkshell Technology. The material can be dyed and washed. The special thermal backing was developed by Schoeller subsidiary, Eschler. The heatable yarns can be applied to specified areas of the fabric or uniformly distributed. All that is needed is a connection to a low voltage power source.

Smart control for exact heat

Flying Textile's iWarm3.0 is incredibly interactive. In contrast to other systems, the iWarm3.0 has sensors that constantly monitor the inner temperature of apparel and then independently regulate the heating function so that a uniform temperature is attained. For this purpose, the system is controlled via an external app. The user simply enters the desired temperature in the "system controls", i.e. the smartphone with the app, which then communicates via Bluetooth with the sensors and textile's heating elements. This allows for constant heat within a range of 38 to 53°C. Heat is generated by carbon nanotubes embedded in a membrane. Lightweight, thin, soft, and washable, these panels can be processed with any type of textile and powered by an external power source (maximal 5 V and 7.5 W). The manufacturer guarantees up to 20 washes without any loss of function (cables and controllers have to be removed). The desired warmth is provided in just 10 seconds.

Important topic: Product liability

Clearly, the effort to develop such heatable textiles faces great technical challenges. However, there are also many points to be considered from a legal point of view as far as smart textiles are concerned. The issues facing manufacturers and distributors in the area of product liability were the subject of the lecture "Smart Textiles - A New World of Data". Besides considering the possibilities of damage to the textile or injury to the wearer from the heat and power source, to the extent mobile devices communicate with the textiles there is also a need to deal with the subject of data privacy. An exciting new world promises a huge market potential if the manufacturers and distributors keep track of all the parameters.

Intelligent warmth directly on the skin

There are other manufacturers, such as InuHeat and Clim8, developing other fabrics equipped with smart heat sources. At InuHeat, a flexible heating yarn is being built into socks to provide additional warmth. The yarn is fed into the knitting process, yet the socks, nevertheless, are still soft and washable. The company is currently working to combine the heating yarn with various different yarns to demonstrate a wide range of processing possibilities.

The young company Clim8 is taking things even one step further. Clim8 provides the warmth in the textile through heating pads that can be integrated into any fabric (except polypropylene). To achieve the proper effect, the clothing requires a "next-to-skin" application. This is because the pads not only emit heat; they also use sensors to measure the body temperature of the wearer. The sensor data is transmitted to the athlete's smartphone and displayed by means of an app. This communication takes place via a dongle, which transmits data via Bluetooth. The desired body temperature can be set in the app in advance and, with the aid of the software, the fabric supplies exactly the amount of heat required to hold that temperature. Furthermore, the heat can also be manually regulated at any time.

Tintex - Delivering Naturally Advanced Performance

For the first time at Performance Days, Tintex presented unique developments made with the ROICA™ Eco Smart family, a clear, innovative leader in premium eco-sustainable stretch fibres. Within this family, Tintex has selected the world-first GRS certified ROICA™ premium stretch yarn that comes at least 50% from recycled pre-consumer waste.

Some new performance innovation highlights include:

n B.Cork™, BCI cotton brushed fleece, three layer outershells, luxurious base layers in extra fine gauges, ECOTEC® by Marchi & Fildi, extra fine jersey in 44 gauge using micro modal with an extra soft, water based coating for a translucent, sensual “fashiontech” product.