Photonic Textiles

Light emitting shirts

This video shows off Philips "Lumalive" light-emitting fabric. These glowing threads might work well for night time cycling!

“Taking the Lumalive fabrics from prototypes to integrated products has been a major challenge,” said Bas Zeper, Managing Director of Photonic Textiles, Philips Research. “The light emitting textiles have to be flexible, durable and operated by reasonably compact batteries. Fitting all that into a comfortable, lightweight garment is a considerable engineering success.”

“What Philips Research showed last year were research prototypes; this year the jackets and furniture represent versions that are ready to go into commercial production, and include integrated power sources and control electronics,” said Zeper.

The products include features that make them practical for daily use. For example, when integrating the Lumalive fabrics into the garment Philips Research has made the parts that can’t be easily washed — such as the batteries and control electronics—simple to disconnect and reconnect after the garment has been cleaned. Even the light-emitting layer can be easily removed and refitted to the jacket.