The Google team’s latest project takes a very literal meaning on the word “wearables” – meet their latest idea, Project Jacquard.
Google have a new idea for when it comes to the very fabric of our clothes: besides picking it for its softness, texture or looks, we might also decide on some garments because they let us interact with all of our favorite gadgets. Google have this idea of producing fabric that can be used to turn on or regulate lights, control TVs or stereos, and several other possible interactions all across our houses, everything molded to whatever the users desire.
Project Jacquard exists in some sort of interconnected paradise where all kinds of gadgets interconnect with each other. This project was shown a few weeks ago at San Francisco’s very own Moscone Center, in a specially designated area for the Google I/O team. According to the reports and images brought for by the CNet team, Google are working in replacing tactile screens for fabric and thread, and using those to interact with several and diverse gadgets via the fiber networks in these.
Apparently, the concept behind this is very similar to the one behind traditional touch screens, with the big difference that fabric is malleable, hence, allowing a bigger range of possible interactions. Furthermore, these threads allow multitouch possibilities, and can be combined with gyroscopes and accelerometers for new features – will we all end with GPS’s incorporated in our clothing?
As of now, this is only a demonstration and a proof of concept – but knowing Google, they’re surely preparing something big with these ideas, which might eventually be introduced in the form of consumer products. Could it be that Google’s next big ally are fashion and sport clothes brands? We will have to wait and see what the Mountain View guys end up doing with this Project Jacquard.
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