Hong Kong AI Labs Develop new Fabric which aids in Reducing Waste

Simple signals could change the color of clothes in the future, according to a group of researchers who have developed color-changing fabrics using tiny, smart cameras. Hong Kong's Artificial Intelligence Design Laboratory (AiDLab) said the technology could reduce waste by offering color options for clothing items.

Fabrics woven with polymer optical fibers (POF) and fabric-based yarns can be glazed in various colors.

With your thumb in front of the material, it turns dark blue. The heart symbol turns pink. The OK indicator will be green. Colors can also be adjusted via the phone app, and AI algorithms help the camera distinguish individual user movements.

Professor Jeanne Tan, who works at Polytechnic University's School of Fashion and Textiles and heads the research team, notes the POFs are made of polymethyl methacrylate, which is recyclable, and the structure of the textile enables easy separation of POFs from yarns for recycling. The fabric is also soft.

“The hand-feel is just like any ordinary knitted fabric," she said.

AiDLab hopes that the technology will one day be commercialized. It's currently on display in installations at shopping malls and other locations in Hong Kong.