10Meters News Service

December 13, 2002 – A half-dozen years ago, wearable computing was the stuff of super-geek dreams. Today, the ultimate mobile computing system is the stuff of the battlefield.

Although still in the early stages, advances in wireless technologies and the development of compact devices in general have helped jumpstart the sector. Also providing the momentum: The U.S. Department of Defense, which has earmarked $3.4 million in its 2003 budget toward the development and deployment of wearable computers for so-called "field automation applications."

DoD illustration of the modern warrior

One of the primary civilian providers in that push is Virginia-based Xybernaut Corp. This week the company sent out a press release reminding investors of its continued participation "in various wearable computing initiatives within major branches of the U.S. Department of Defense."

Specifically, Xybernaut noted that its Xybernaut Mobile Assistant V wearable computers and the participation of its subsidiary, Xybernaut Solutions, Inc., "form the foundation of various mobile/wearable computing solutions" for programs such as the Marine Corps' Maintenance Mentoring Systems and the Navy's Remote Technical Assistance Support System.

While companies like Xybernaut help move wearable computing forward, in this case it is the military's vision that ultimately drives development of what the DoD would deem "value-added" applications.

In that regard, the value is having strategic advantage coupled with the safety of field personnel. The gold ring is what the DoD calls "Future Warrior Systems."

Groundwork for these future warrior systems is being laid at the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center's Natick Labs in Natick, Mass., where the work on 21st century gizmos is aimed at the "total life cycle management of soldier and related support systems" including those associated with equipment, clothing, food and protection in general.

Fabric of Life

Integrating computers and electronics with textiles is among the key research programs at Natick Labs. It is a logical extension of true wearable mobility: by weaving networking capabilities, including antennas, into clothing, military personnel would be freed from the "weight and bulk" of currently used communication devices.

More importantly, as Natick reports, such active intelligent textile systems have the capacity of improving an individual's performance "by sensing and responding to a situational combat need," which in turn would allow "the Warrior to continue his mission."

The networking system Natick is aiming to create within its intelligent textiles is a military version of the short-range personal area network (PAN), which is also the networking range for consumer wireless devices using Bluetooth technologies.

In military terms, the PAN would, as Natick describes it, "open new opportunities for battlefield lethality and survivability." PAN-based technologies could be used to detect the presence of chemicals or monitor a soldier's physiological condition, according to Natick, as well as to "prevent friendly fire casualties by providing positive identification."

One early step toward battlefield-PAN development was Natick's partnership with Foster-Miller Inc. of Waltham, Mass., which resulted in a textile-based universal serial bus (USB) cable.

Commonly used to connect peripheral hardware like printers to laptop and desktop computers, the relatively thick USB was re-manufactured as a thin, flexible cable with flat, low-profile connectors – a wearable version that could be more easily integrated into clothing.

The melding of wires and antennas into fabric on a mass scale is the goal of research being conducted for Natick by Photonics Laboratories, Inc. in Philadelphia and the Philadelphia School of Textiles. In this case, the idea is to develop manufacturing processes that would allow the integration of optical fibers and traditional wires during the knitting and weaving stage, an obvious boon for large-scale clothing production.

In yet another project Natick is looking at ways to aid communications between personnel and their wearables. Here, the research is centering on a sleeve-based keypad. Also on tap: a textile-based data bus and the needed connectivity to send the signal from the keypad.

Natick is currently working with WRONZ EuraLab in the United Kingdom on development of a soft-switch fabric. The research is directed at creating a keyboard that would be pressure-sensitive, not touch-sensitive. (See "High-Tech Textiles.")