'Smart' uniforms protect soliders with fiber optics

17 Jun 2002

An army may very well march on its clothing. Polymer scientists at The University of Akron, in collaboration with researchers from other institutions, are working to develop army fatigues capable of reacting to and protecting soldiers from projectiles, warfare agents, temperature extremes, fire and radiation. Researchers hope to produce garments that indicate mechanical or thermal stresses by changing color. To achieve this, the garments will be embedded with fiber optic systems to alert soldiers when they have been exposed to chemical or biological warfare agents.