Development of a sensor-embedded flexible textile structure for apparel or large area applications

Abstract

<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;font-family:Fd1321886-Identity-H;mso-bidi-font-family:Fd1321886-Identity-H">Various optical sensors have been embedded into the flexible textile structures and then attached to the connectors to determine the noise level during demodulation due to the interlacement of the fiber in the fabric structure. These optical sensors, such as Extrinsic Fabry-Perot Interferometer (EFPI), Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) and Long Period Grating (LPG), are capable of measuring strain and temperature of the devices to which they are attached. LPG sensor can be configured as a chemical sensor. Reflected spectrum from the sensor has been produced by injecting light into the fiber to check the functionality of the sensor. Both EFPI and FBG sensors, successfully embedded into the fabric without any damage, have been found to be functional when demodulated. A brief description of the optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) demodulation method has also been provided.

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