Woven eTextiles in HCI — a Literature Review

Advances to functional materials and flexible electronics have yielded new means of integrating electrical properties into textile materials, which invite researchers in various fields to apply woven-textile construction methods in eTextile development. However, common ground for woven eTextiles’ prototyping is still taking shape. This calls for greater understanding of how the knowledge now scattered across diverse research fields can benefit the textiles’ development for HCI. To investigate how eTextile research has employed weaving and extract insight for HCI purposes, the authors reviewed and categorised applications of woven structures and electrical functions, then identified specifically HCI-relevant qualities and means of creating them via weaving. The paper outlines those woven structures useful for HCI and advocates consistent weaving-related terminology, to improve knowledge transfer across disciplines. In addition, the results point to research opportunities involving haptic qualities, the ability to weave multiple layers, functionality integration, and tools and methods.