The soft, lightweight fabric is 2D printed from nylon plastic polymers and is comprised of hollow, interlocking octahedrons. It is normally as flexible as any other cloth, but when wrapped within a flexible plastic envelope and vacuum-packed, it turns into a rigid structure 25 times stiffer than when in its 'relaxed' state.
Known as “wearable structured fabric”, its inventors hope it could lead to the creation of new smart fabrics which can harden to protect the wearer against an impact (such as in bulletproof vests or kits for high-impact sports) or to provide support when additional load-bearing capacity is needed (such as on construction sites or in configurable medical support).
“With an engineered fabric that is lightweight and tuneable, easily changeable from soft to rigid, we can use it to address the needs of patients and the ageing population, for instance, to create exoskeletons that can help them stand, carry loads and assist them...