HOW TO GET WHAT YOU WANT

Multi-Conductor Fabrics

This post summarizes various conductive fabrics and narrow-fabrics that have separated areas of conductivity. This can be a useful property to have when looking to make multi-wire connections or matrices.

Also see: conductive fabrics, conductive threads, thin flexible wire

Zebra Fabric

Manufactured by ???
Distributed by HITEK >> https://www.hitek-ltd.co.uk/fabric-evaluation-kit

Wide-Stripe Zebra Fabric (Pitch – 31.5mm(c)/6.5mm(nc)
Narrow Stripe Zebra Fabric (Pitch – 8.125mm(c)/7.5mm(nc)
c = conductive
nc=non-conductive

Narrow Stripe Zebra Fabric:

Wide-Stripe Zebra Fabric:

Datasheet:

Amohr

Beautiful multi-stranded conductive bands!
>> http://amohr.com/englisch/doc/leitfaehige_baender.php

45047

Width: 18 mm
Description: PET + Elastomer + 3 CU-Strands in wavy shape,
app. 0.06 OHM/m, can be ironed-on, elastic

03750

Width: 18 mm
Description: PET + 7 CU-Strands in wavy shape, app. 0.05 OHM/m, can be ironed-on, slightly stretchable

03023

Width: 12,5 mm
Description: PET + 5 CU-Strands, app. 0.04 OHM/m,
can be ironed-on

03586

Width: 21 mm
Description: PET + 11 fine CU-Strands, app. 0.05 OHM/m,
can be ironed-on

45348

3365

Offray

Offray is a company that makes narrow fabrics and some of these include conductive traces.
Offray >> http://www.osnf.com/ (USA)

Jumbo

This German company makes stretchy conductive traces inside narrow fabrics, but I have not been able to obtain any samples.

Heathcoat

Include stripes of conductive thread in their knit fabrics.
>> http://www.heathcoat.co.uk/ (UK)

Toray

Integrate X-Static fibers in their woven fabrics, running like needle-stripes.
Toray – Innovation by Chemistry >> http://www.seeitsafe.co.uk/ (UK)

Plug and Wear

This Italian textile company is knitting conductive textiles from thin metal wires.

>> http://www.plugandwear.com/ (Italy)

Plug and Wear’s knit perfboards >> http://www.plugandwear.com/default.asp?mod=cat&cat_id=89,103

Three-Conductor Ribbon

Sparkfun >> https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10172

Conductive Thread Ribbon Cable

It’s a 100% polyester grosgrain weave ribbon with silver plated nylon thread. The ribbon is insulated so it’s foldable and washable. It has 4 conductors and about 16 ohms of resistance per foot. (thanks Yolita!)

Adafruit >> http://www.adafruit.com/products/1139

How to connect conductive thread ribbon cable with Flexible Flat Cable (FFC) connectors by Haeyon:
>> http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-connect-conductive-thread-ribbon-cable-with/?ALLSTEPS

Content by Mika Satomi and Hannah Perner-Wilson

The following institutions have funded our research and supported our work:

From 2013-2015 Mika is a guest professor at the eLab at Kunsthochschule Berlin-Weissensee

From July - December 2013 Hannah was a researcher at the UdK's Design Research Lab

From 2010-2012 Mika was a guest researcher in the Smart Textiles Design Lab at The Swedish School of Textiles

From 2009 - 2011 Hannah was a graduate student in the MIT Media Lab's High-Low Tech research group led by Leah Buechley

In 2009 Hannah and Mika were both research fellows at the Distance Lab

Between 2003 - 2009 Hannah and Mika were both students at Interface Cultures

We support the Open Source Hardware movement. All our own designs published on this website are released under the Free Cultural Works definition