MODELING OF ELECRO-MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF CONDUCTIVE KNITTED FABRICS UNDER LARGE UNIAXIAL DEFORMATION

摘要

In our paper, in order to study the relationship between the resistance and the load applied on the fabric, a theoretical model is proposed. A stainless steel multi-filament yarn knitted fabric is fabricated for the investigations. The study is focused on the relationship between the load and equivalent resistance of the fabric under uniaxial extension. A circuit network is designed based on the loop configuration and fabric structure. A two-dimensional hexagon model is used to represent the loop configurations. An image capturing system was employed to record the images of the loop configurations during the extension, and the relationship between the configuration of the loop and the load imposed on the fabric are obtained by computer image process. It is found that the contacting resistance of the overlapped yarns is the key factor that governs the sensitivity of the fabric sensor. In addition, fabric structure that determines the structure of the circuit network is also an important factor affecting the sensitivity of the fabric sensor.