Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
Conductive textiles are great for making slim, flexible fabric circuits and soft sensors
and switches, but they are not ideal for projects that might get wet or overly sweaty. If you
need insulated connections, it's far better to use thin-gauge stranded wire than to try to in-
sulate conductive thread traces.
Sewable Microcontrollers and Components
When designing printed circuit boards for wearables, creators often use double-sided pads
with holes large enough for a needle to pass through. This way, the boards can be stitched
into clothes with conductive thread (as in Figure 9.8 ) or soldered. Using gold-plated pads
will slow oxidation. Circuit boards often have rounded corners soas not to poke the wearer.
Dedicated wearable PCBs are easier when beginners are getting started, and the resulting
projects are a bit more flat and refined. Nevertheless, standard through-hole components
like LEDs and photoresistors can also be made wearable by coiling the leads with pliers.
(Source: Image courtesy of adafruit.com )
Figure 9.8 Sew hardware with conductive thread.
The most commonly used sewable microcontrollers are Arduino-compatible, likely be-
cause it was easy to modify the open source files to transform the standard Arduino mi-
crocontroller into a sewable format while still using the now-familiar toolchain.
SparkFun's LilyPad product line and Adafruit's FLORA line ( Figure 9.9 ) both have plenty
of Arduino-compatible sewable accessories like LED sequins; I2C sensors for motion,
light, and color; a sewable GPS; and more. In many cases, these parts are wearable/sew-
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