Smart fabric provides 'air conditioning' for the wearer, adjustable with a mobile app

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has developed a new high-volume production method for hot embossing microscopic channel structures onto large areas of plastic film at a low cost for use, for example, in wearable technology and cosmetic applications. One of VTT's goals is to engineer a smart fabric adjustable with a mobile app for controlling the wearer's temperature.

With VTT's high-volume method, microchannels can be produced on large areas of plastic film in a short time. Pumping cold or hot liquid through a network of microchannels enables the temperature control of functional clothes.