Success Stories: Smart Materials, Smarter Wearables

Can metamaterials transform wearable health technology? A new research team aims to unpack how technology can enhance the wearable market.

A team at Seoul National University of Science and Technology has created a tactile sensing platform using 3D printed auxetic mechanical metamaterials. This could help enhance the sensitivity and stability of wearables, while also heightening personalization.

Here is how this can help:

• Increase sensitivity through inward contraction and localized strain concentration.
• Ensure performance stability even within rigid layers.
• Enable customizable performance without changing materials.

Looking to the future, some potential future applications could include smart insoles for gait tracking, robotic grippers or wearable health systems, and devices for rehabilitation and more. In the coming decade, these auxetic-structured, 3D-printed sensors could become foundational components in wearable electronics.