Prototypes Round Two

On Tuesday, March 26, the students presented their second round of prototypes to faculty members. They took the feedback from the first prototypes and improved the garments in preparation for testing on subjects.

As stated earlier, one group was creating a men's posture brace that focused on rehabilitation and improving posture. The previous prototype featured an athletic polyester / spandex blend mesh, an elastic and silicone band, and velcro closure. With their second prototype, the students widened the inner straps, moved the connection point down, and made the outer straps more adjustable. Moving forward, they still need to find a way to keep the loose ends from flapping.

Front of the second prototype for men

Back of the second prototype for men

The other group was creating a women's posture bra that helps with back and neck pain while also being aesthetically pleasing and fashionable (without losing the function). Their original creation was a sporty bra with a deep V-neck neckline, peek-a-boo shoulder, wide elastic band, and fitted breast cups. With their second prototype, the students changed the base fabric, added a lace overlay for aesthetics and to look more like an undergarment, made the elastic banding narrower, and put in a black elastic band to conform to the overall color scheme.

Front of the second prototype for women

Back of the second prototype for women

Next week, the students will begin recruiting volunteers to test their products and hold body scanning sessions for those chosen to participate.

Body Scanning Session

On Thursday, March 14, the students met in the apparel lab to work with the body scanner, a machine which provides non-contact points of measure, and to talk about the upcoming live fit model sessions. First, the class discussed which measurements they would like for the body scanner to extract and how they will use those measurements. They also tried to determine whether the body scanner can be used to determine if the subjects’ posture was improved by wearing the posture garment. Throughout the discussion, the class kept in mind the protocol outlined in the IRB. 

  

Next the students had the opportunity to work with the body scanner and learn how to use it. They looked at different possible measurements from the body scanner and determined which would be most useful / valuable. They chose from upper-body measurements for the neck, collar, chin, shoulder, arms, chest, and bust. The students also had to determine how to ensure that the measurements are correct (such as with the waist location, as it is not always at the narrowest part of the body).

Lastly, one of the students volunteered to jump into the body scanner and get scanned both wearing and not wearing the product prototype. One problem that was identified was with garments that had black on them, as the machine extracted these areas from the final image. The result was an avatar with long legs and arms and a short torso.  They also worked out kinks with some of the measurements.

Next week, the students will present their second prototypes based on student and faculty suggestions.

Prototype Presentations

On Thursday, February 28, the students presented their first prototypes to faculty members and demonstrated their understanding of the interplay between the anatomy of the body and the garments.

First, Lauren presented her men's posture brace, assisted by her fit model. Her team's goal at the beginning of the semester was to create a product that focused more on rehabilitation (as opposed to the women's everyday bra) and improved posture. They made several changes to the original product including changing the fabric to a more athletic mesh, removing the channel / casing waistband to remove bulk, creating a wider outer cap sleeve, using elastic with silicone, increasing the length of the straps, and making it more manly. Their final prototype used a polyester / spandex blend for the main body part, 100% polyester side pieces, elastic with a silicone strip, and a velcro closure. Throughout the development process, the students realized the complexity and extensive time involved in prototyping. They also learned how important it was to work with the direction of the stretch in the fabrics in order to optimize key areas of the product.  Moving forward, the students would like to change the strap length to accomodate the small/medium/large size runs, use velcro as a way to adjust strap length, change the order of operations to be more productive, and make the straps wider (one inch rather than spaghetti straps). They would also like to accomodate a 10-inch height variable between sizes in order to account for varying torso lengths. The fit model also provided some insight (though the product was too small for him). He would like the product to keep the v-neck (rather than the scoop neck) and to be longer (reaching below his ribs). He also really liked the material.

Secondly, Curry, Morgan, and Laura presented their prototype for the women's posture bra. Their team's goal at the beginning of the semester was to create a bra that helps women with back and neck pain but is more aesthetically pleasing and fashionable without losing function. It was intended to be more preventive ("an everyday bra") than rehabilitative. Such a product would be more marketable, as it would appeal to a wider range of females. They made several changes to the original product including making a deep V-neck neckline, putting the straps closer together for more of a peek-a-boo shoulder, and making the breast cups more fitted. They also used fabric for the side panels that had less stretch than the front and back panels and a wide elastic band across the bottom (to fit closely to the body). The result was a sporty look that looks like a crop top and would definitely appeal to the athletic market. As they continue through the semester, the students plan to make a product that looks more like an undergarment (such as with lace overlays). They would also like to experiment with more structured cups (to make the chest look normal under everyday clothing). They will also need to work with grading in order to accomodate how body proportion affects garment fit. The class ended with a discussion on aesthetic and functional improvements; students and faculty debated the virtues of using silicone on the elastic, a thinner elastic band, a deeper V-neck, and a smaller front piece. Going forward, the students will need to work with more body types / proportions to test fit.