Smart jackets and smarter you, here is Google's Project Jacquard

How Jacquard works

Imagine, you can control your smartphone just with a tap on your jacket's sleeve or answer a call by pressing a point on your jacket. That's Project Jacquard.

The technology has become more refined since its launch but the mode of operation remains the same.

"Project Jacquard makes it possible to weave touch and gesture interactivity into any textile using standard, industrial looms. Everyday objects such as clothes and furniture can be transformed into interactive surfaces", says Google.

The concept is simple - the conductive yarn structure combines thin, metallic alloys with natural and synthetic yarns like cotton, polyester or silk, making the yarn strong enough to be woven into any industrial loom.

Jacquard yarns are so identical to the standard yarns that one would be unable to distinguish between the two.

"Using conductive yarns, bespoke touch and gesture-sensitive areas can be woven at precise locations, anywhere on the textile. Alternatively, sensor grids can be woven throughout the textile, creating large, interactive surfaces," explains Google.

Embedding technology

The engineers at ATAP keep the technology as discreet as possible. The connectors and circuits are no bigger than the button on a jacket. These miniature electronics capture minute signals, touch interactions and gestures via algorithms.

The captured touch and gesture data is then wirelessly transmitted to mobile phones or other devices to control a wide range of functions.

Google explains, "LEDs, haptics, and other embedded outputs provide feedback to the user, seamlessly connecting them to the digital world."

The final piece of Jacquard is a smartphone app, which allows users to configure how gestures map to the apps you see. These apps could be Google services, like Maps and search or third party apps like Strava and Spotify.

While wearable technology has spread as it was expected to be (maybe not entirely), the question remains - how will Jacquard fare? People still do not seem to find this technology appealing; think smart watches, smart glasses. However, by making wearable tech a part of daily clothing, it could be said that the technology might really take off.