Knitted Textile Substrate with Variable Stitch Patterns
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current electronic textiles lack high stretchability, which leads to excessive stress on electronic components and connections when stretched, resulting in reduced reliability for applications involving moving body parts.
Innovation Solution
A knitted substrate with alternating sets of substrate portions, one with a high tensile stiffness (stockinette pattern) and another with low tensile stiffness (rib-knitting), allowing for electrical connections through conductive yarns, to balance stretchability and reliability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If electronic textiles are made with uniform high stretchability, then the textile can be draped around moving body parts, but excessive stress is applied to electronic components and connections reducing reliability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different stitch patterns to different regions of the knitted substrate. Specifically, substrate portions with electronic components are knitted with a first stitch pattern providing higher tensile stiffness to protect components, while interconnecting portions are knitted with a second stitch pattern providing higher stretchability. This local differentiation allows the textile to stretch without subjecting electronic components to excessive stress.
Solution Approach 2:
The knitted substrate is segmented into distinct functional regions: stiff substrate portions for mounting electronic components and flexible interconnecting portions for stress absorption. The conductive yarns are also segmented into conductor traces on stiff portions and interconnecting conductors on flexible portions, creating a distributed structure that maintains electrical connectivity while protecting components during stretching.
2Reliability
If substrate portions with electronic components are made stiff, then component mounting reliability is improved, but the overall textile stretchability is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates local quality differentiation by using a first stitch pattern (e.g., 1x1 rib stitch) for substrate portions containing electronic components, providing high tensile stiffness and reliable component mounting. Meanwhile, the interconnecting substrate portions use a second stitch pattern (e.g., stockinette stitch) that provides superior stretchability, allowing the overall textile to adapt to moving body parts without compromising component security.
Data Source
AI summary
A knitted substrate (4; 16) for electrical connection of electronic components (3; 17a-f) thereto. The knitted substrate comprises a first set of substrate portions (5a-e; 9a-f) knitted with a first stitch pattern resulting in a first tensile stiffness; and a second set of substrate portions (6a-f; 18a-f) knitted with a second stitch pattern resulting in a second tensile stiffness that is greater than the first tensile stiffness. A substrate portion of the first set of substrate portions (5a-e; 19a-f) is provided between substrate portions (6a-f; 18a-f) of the second set of substrate portions, and each substrate portion of the second set of substrate portions (6a-f; 18a-f) comprises conductive yarns (11a-b) arranged to allow electrical connection of at least one of the electronic components (3; 17a-f) thereto.