A framework for handweaving robotic textiles with liquid crystal elastomer fibers.

ABSTRACT: Textile production methods present a rich set of strategies for developing materials with both form and function encoded at the fiber scale. Beyond simply acting as a static flexible barrier, the ability to incorporate environmentally responsible materials into fabric architectures significantly expands the textile design space by adding on-demand and programmable 3D structural morphing. To this end, liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) are a promising candidate for enabling these reversible actuation behaviors in fabric-based constructs. Drawing on traditional textile manufacturing techniques and through a detailed exploration of the vast woven textile design space, we have demonstrated programmable and reversible curling, puffing, and in-plane shrinkage behaviors by embedding the functionali

SUBMITTER: Nicita S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12081926 | biostudies-literature | 2025 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature