Help Needed

[kelly doerr]

Hi my names Kelly, I am currently completing my Alevel in Textiles and need to gain some information from my target group of backpackers. I would be extremely greatful if you could answer a few questions to contribute to my research development. Thanks for your consideration
1.what gender are you and what colour do you prefer to wear?
2.what wearable electronics would you like to be incorporated into yo clothing in the future (eg- GPS, two way radio, indoor tacking syste, iPod etc).(please specify at least two as the main basis for my research is wearable electronics)
I have currently researched into clothing and the types of performance characteristics that are needed for backpacking.
I have currently found out a range of new wearable electronics that are beggining to be incorporated
If you could complete these two questions i would be extemely greatful. Thankyou for your time.
Kelly.

[Scott Peterson]

1. Male/Natural colors like Olive, blue, tan, black

2. Do not want to purchase electronics as a component of clothing. Because features for clothing and electronics can be so varied independant of each other, trying to create a match that meets all my needs is a long shot.

[Richard Matthews]

male

red

I would NOT want combination clothes and electronic gear. I layer rather than wear a single item. The embedded electronics would need to be in each layer. Probably has some military applications, but not flexible enough for hiking.

[Bob Gabbart]

1. Male – I prefer natural colors.
2. I like the trend in clothing to accommodate electronic devices – like having holes in a pocket of a jacket for headphones to go from an MP3 player. Right now I can’t think of any reason to have electronics integrated into the clothing. But if the electronics performed better from being integrated then I could be sold. Ideas that come to mind would be a shirt with a built in pulse sensor (like the Polar chest belt) or a jacket with a built in GPS antenna in the collar. The GPS would perform better from having a larger antenna oriented correctly in the collar of the jacket, then sitting on my belt or in my pocket.

If they were to be integrated it would be preferable that they were seamless – I wouldn’t want to know they were there. And washing machine safe, of course.

It would also be good if the clothing could be upgraded. I wouldn’t want to have to replace my favorite jacket because I need to get a new GPS.

[Scott Ashdown]

Kelly,

I’m a male and my favourite colour for hiking is red / orange. The brighter the better. If I became involved in an accident I would want to be seen, not camouflaged against the countryside.

I agree with the comment above that an integrated antenna would be good for a gps device to plug into, or a radio etc.

I think my prefered option would be for some form of flexible solar cells to be built into the coat. That way I could plug any small electrical device of my choosing into the coat and recharge it whilst I was walking along, phone, GPS etc.

What about a few small LED bulbs stitched into the seams at key points. That way at night, if walking on a country road, I could press a small switch and they could illuminate / flash to alert other people / motorists to the fact I was there. If the coat had refelctive strips as well, the bulbs could highlight those as well. You could also have a movement sensor mode, that way you could switch the electrics on when you started your walk, but have the LEDS off. Then if the sensor stopped sensing movement, it coud trigger the flashing lights. That could be handy if you had a fall. The system would be extremely lightweight and a good safety feature.

I’m sure there would be someone at your college / sixth form etc who could build the small electronic control you would need. You could then just install it into a coat as a prototype. There’s me giving away all my creativity.

A small thermometer showing the temperature inside the coat as well as outside could be useful as well. It could help you identify how effective your coat is or help monitor the temperature of others in your group.

A levels. I take it you’re from the UK?

Anyway, good luck with your research.

Scott

[Jason Shaffer]

Hi Kelly,
1. I’m male. Color depends on garment. Windshirt (or other garment worn most often, in moderate conditions): green black or grey (Leave No Trace). Shell jacket: bright ‘mountaineering’ yellow, for emergency use.

2. No wearable electronics integrated w/ clothing, ever. I, like most long-distance backpackers, require clothing to be compressible, easy to layer on and off, with straightforward adjustments. Any wearable electronics that /would/ appeal to me in the future (GPS and thermometer/hygrometer/barometer/altimeter would be my two choices) would have to integrate into the pack harness soley, completely independent of clothing. But even those items, in more harness-compatible formats than currently available, would not be high on my list at all, and would be a very tough sell considering current battery technology (better to keep UNDER insulation in cold weather), increased susceptibility to impact damage, etc.

Best of luck in your research!

[Mark]

1. Male. I like grey, black, brown for just about anything… also the odd bit of yellow or orange for shirts.
2. I’m hard pressed to think of any electronics I’d want built-in my clothing. I’d rather have my data in a smaller form factor on my wrist.
-Mark

[Jason Klass]

Let me check…………Male!

Mostly I like Earthtones like Green, brown, tan, etc.

Personal electronics? Well, maybe a digital compass or altimeter would be nice but honestly, I probably wouldn’t buy clothing with integrated electronics.

[Stephen Parmenter]

Male
Greys, blues, taupe, khaki
The idea of integrated electronics doesn’t really appeal to me either. I think in one of Dr J’s reports on future gear, he discussed a map with integrated GPS. Now that would be cool.

[Mike Barney]

Male, color something that’s easy to clean/ doesn’t show dirt well, dirt colored?
Otherwise, I want it all.

I like what I saw in FFW, Future Force Warrior, the ultimate in integrating all of these and more into wearables.

You’re going to see the integration or communications (radio + other for voice and data), location systems (individual GPS and team location capabilities + other), wearable computer (which includes a SuperIpod, Windows, camera, digital maps + other), plus health monitoring and maintenance systems, all in a <military> lightweight package. Commercial versions will follow, ultralight after that.

But I want it all NOW!
Does that help?
MikeB

[Ken Helwig]

you already got me at the lightweight backpacker. no need to do this again.

[Miguel Arboleda]

1) Male (just about everyone here is male… not sure if this is because the site is not female-friendly or because the subject matter just doesn’t interest most women…) I prefer to wear cobalt blue, brick orange, slate grey, black, and mustard yellow.

2) Wearable electronics? Hmm… I prefer no electronics at all, personally, but if I must… a high end, compact digital sound recorder or a device that automatically controls the color of the clothing both for light and heat conditions and for visibility when photographing and observing wild animals. A solar panel system might be nice, too. Then I can look like Robbie the Robot from Lost in Space!

[J R]

Male

Natural colors – olive, tan, gray, black, brown, sage, khaki, etc – you get the idea. I hate seeing people looking like traffic cones (red, orange, yellow, bright blue, etc) in the woods. Hate it hate it hate it.

Wearable electronics? I occasionally carry a cell phone or an iPod shuffle. However I see ZERO need for integration with my clothing. Zip, Zilch, Nada.

[Dale Wambaugh]

1)Male, earth tones
2)A GPS is the only thing that I can imagine worthwhile for electronics– the trend is to wrist-worn units. Other safety-oriented gear like avalanche locator beacons, two-way or weather radio come to mind. A solar charging panel on the top of a pack might be useful.

In general, clothing incorporated electronics seem to be gimmicky, but we couldn’t imagine a lot of things before they came on the market, so don’t be afraid to get outside the box. This stuff needs to *work* and work right the first time– no place for toys that break.

[Eric Eaton]

Male

I prefer bright, light colors for both being seen and for spotting ticks as I hail from Long Island and am surrounded by the pesky little devils. Yellow or orange please (sorry JR).

Electronics don’t seem to have a place in clothing to me. However, if I let my imagination run a little, I could go with the L.E.D. idea – maybe ultra-efficient ones running off of electricity generated by body movement. Hey, as long as we’re here, how about a built-in screen on a sleeve or eye patch networked through satelites to a voice operated computer with audio being conveyed directly via bone contact points so only the wearer hears? “Computer, please give ambient temperature, altitude, location, heading, and estimated time for next feeding at current caloric expenditure. Oh, and have a dozen roses sent to my wife for her birthday.”

Good luck with your quest.

Eric

[Shelly Skye]

Female

Like blues and greens with one bright wind shirt for safety, usually yellow.

I wouldn’t be interested in any clothing interated electronic equipment but wrist digital stuff is OK. I have too much electronic input in my daily life to want to use it in the backcountry.

[Mark Hurd]

Kelly,

1) Male/Orange,Yellow, Deep Blue

2) Light weight solar array in a hat or cap for charging or powering the other gizmos. Shoes that could generate electricity with each step, tell you how far you have gone, the stresses on your feet and ankles with feedback to help you improve your walking technique. Pants or shirt that could sense wind speed, temp, humidity, etc inside and out and perhaps change their properties (i.e pants become more windproof with increased wind and more breathable in still air)

If, on the other hand, we are talking about tucking an iPod in a jacket that has a built-in headphone wiring system, I’m not very interested.

Best of luck,
-Mark

[David Goodyear]

Male

Color is not a big factor.

I think that a light weight solar cell aray to charge batteries would be cool. Either sewn into the fabric, or as an overlay to a backback, hat or coat. It would need voltage adjustments and universal plugs to be practical.

Good luck,

Dave

[Eliza Cava]

I’m female,
I wear browns, greens, and blues to hike in but purples/reds/oranges as outer layers for inclement weather and packcovers. Don’t want a hunter shooting me on a crisp fall day!

I wouldn’t want any electronics embedded in my clothing. Like the only other female respondent said, I have too much contact with electronics in my daily life and wouldn’t want any more while on the trail. Also, it would impede my primary goals for outdoor clothing, which is that they be inexpensive and that I have no regrets about trashing them.

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