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August 2, 2017 - inconnu - Mini-robots could help keep fashions changing – while still being worn.Tiny droids which stick to clothes and move over them changing the pattern or design have been revealed by researchers.Project Kino is a collaborative effort with designers from London's Royal College of Art and technicians from two US universities, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford.The research explores ways these wearables could open up new aesthetic and functional clothing possibilities.The tiny robots can navigate over a person's clothes through a magnetic drive system. The magnet underneath the fabric holds the robot in place while the device itself can be controlled either autonomously or by the wearer. Project Kino has been investigating ways the wearable robotic technology could be applied.From an aesthetic perspective, the devices can act as pattern-changing devices, shifting around a wearer's chest to create moving geometric effects. They could also be used as moving jewellery, with several bots creating different shapes and designs depending on the wearer's preferences.Other aesthetic experiments involve etching patterns that leave visible tracks on fabrics such as velvet.They could also be used to create shape-changing garments that can morph into different forms.Functionally the robots could also act as on-body microphones or climate-reactive clothing that adapts to the surrounding environment. One of the examples proposed was a robot controlling a scarf or the drawstrings on a hood.The research team has also conducted a series of interviews with people who tried some of the applications to see if it is something there might be a demand for.One of the major outcomes was the suggestion the devices needed further miniaturization. Another was that the system could be used as an intimate communication device for connecting with remotely located loved ones. One of those quizzed said he would be interested in letting the robot be controlle

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20170802_zaf_v01_019.jpg
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Daily Round Up 2 August 2017
August 2, 2017 - inconnu - Mini-robots could help keep fashions changing – while still being worn.Tiny droids which stick to clothes and move over them changing the pattern or design have been revealed by researchers.Project Kino is a collaborative effort with designers from London's Royal College of Art and technicians from two US universities, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford.The research explores ways these wearables could open up new aesthetic and functional clothing possibilities.The tiny robots can navigate over a person's clothes through a magnetic drive system. The magnet underneath the fabric holds the robot in place while the device itself can be controlled either autonomously or by the wearer. Project Kino has been investigating ways the wearable robotic technology could be applied.From an aesthetic perspective, the devices can act as pattern-changing devices, shifting around a wearer's chest to create moving geometric effects. They could also be used as moving jewellery, with several bots creating different shapes and designs depending on the wearer's preferences.Other aesthetic experiments involve etching patterns that leave visible tracks on fabrics such as velvet.They could also be used to create shape-changing garments that can morph into different forms.Functionally the robots could also act as on-body microphones or climate-reactive clothing that adapts to the surrounding environment. One of the examples proposed was a robot controlling a scarf or the drawstrings on a hood.The research team has also conducted a series of interviews with people who tried some of the applications to see if it is something there might be a demand for.One of the major outcomes was the suggestion the devices needed further miniaturization. Another was that the system could be used as an intimate communication device for connecting with remotely located loved ones. One of those quizzed said he would be interested in letting the robot be controlle