Harvard scientists turn knitting into shape-shifting smart fabric
Harvard researchers have developed a method to create smart, shape-shifting fabrics using conventional industrial knitting techniques. By utilizing elastic yarns and specific plating methods, the team created textiles that can snap into stable 3D configurations without the need for molding.
Why it matters
This innovation could lead to the development of programmable, responsive textiles with applications in robotics, wearable technology, and adaptive materials.
Knitting is no longer limited to making familiar items such as sweaters, hats, and blankets.
Researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have shown that conventional knitting techniques can be used to create functional fabrics capable of changing shape, sensing movement, and operating as switches. The approach could help advance a new generation of programmable textiles.
The team developed specialized, machine-knitted fabrics that can "snap" from one stable shape to another. Physicists describe this ability to maintain multiple stable configurations as multistability.
The research was led by recent Ph.D. graduate Kausalya Mahadevan, who is now a postdoctoral associate in the lab of Katia Bertoldi, the William and Ami Kuan Danoff Professor of Applied Mechanics. The findings were published in Advanced Functional Materials.
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