XelfleX wants to make wearables that “people actually want to wear” by not requiring anything to be worn around a wrist or ankle. Instead, this is a smart fabric technology that does the same thing as most of today’s wearables without any gadgets strapped to one’s body.

The process itself is described as simple, with LED sending initial pulse to up to ten sensors along each fibre. When a joint is moved, this impacts on the amount of light scattering and reflecting at defined sensor points.

XelfleX is envisioned as a low-cost solution that enables full-body motion capture.This information is then relayed to a smartphone or computer in small “electronics packs” which the connected app can understand. The underlying algorithms turn this data into guidance on movement and posture, and provide feedback to athletes, who in turn could use it to, for instance, perfect their tennis serve or golf swing. Similarly, the software can also be used by physiotherapy patients recovering from injury.

“With XelfleX, the garment itself is the sensor and it allows you to create smart clothing that is low-cost, durable, useful and attractive to wear,” said Martin Brock, designer and inventor of XelfleX. “We’ve combined our extensive experience in wearable technology with our deep knowledge of industrial sensing and control to come up with a smart system design for a new generation of wearables.”

XelfleX is envisioned as a low-cost solution that enables full-body motion capture and is designed for medical and industrial applications, as well as consumers who could benefit from more immersive gaming and VR experiences. Naturally, we’ll be following medical applications and get back to you as soon as we have something new to add. Stay tuned…