New Technology "Changes Skin" And "Installs Brain" For Down Jacket

Recently, strong wind cooling weather has occurred in many parts of the country, with local cooling exceeding 10 degrees Celsius. Many people have put on their down jackets again.

Nowadays, down jacket is not the traditional appearance, and technological innovation is giving it a new look. From flexible circuits that can quickly heat up, to intelligent and intimate temperature control systems, to windproof and breathable "black technology" fabrics... These innovative achievements enable down jackets to bring unprecedented warmth to people in cold weather.

Fast heating of flexible circuit within 3 seconds

Are you eager to have a down jacket that can quickly warm up and resist the cold, and can flexibly adjust the temperature according to the needs? Today, flexible circuits like "electronic skin" make this idea come true.

The R&D personnel of Harbin Yunjing Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Yunjing Technology") developed flexible circuits using a new two-dimensional material called MXene. This kind of material has the advantages of strong conductivity and good hydrophilicity. It can quickly generate heat in 1 to 3 seconds with a low voltage of less than 5 volts. The experimental data shows that under the same voltage, the heating power of MXene is 2.5 times that of carbon fiber.

The thickness of MXene film is only 0.01mm, about 1/7 of the diameter of human hair. The researchers made MXene into a flexible circuit, which is not only thin, but also has good flexibility, and can be easily sewn into the inner layer of the down jacket.

The wearer only needs to connect the wires hidden in the inner pocket of the down jacket with the charging bank to activate the low-voltage fast heating system. This down jacket is also equipped with a 4-gear temperature adjustment function, so the wearer can choose the appropriate temperature according to their own environment and actual needs to meet the heating needs in different scenes.

"Wearing this down jacket is like wearing an electric blanket. Even in the extremely cold environment of minus 40 degrees Celsius, the flexible circuit can operate stably and provide heat continuously," said Zhou Yang, founder of Cloud Environment Technology.

It is worth mentioning that under the leadership of Fan Zhimin, the doctoral supervisor of the School of Chemical Engineering of Harbin Institute of Technology, the research and development personnel of Yunjing Technology overcame the problem of MXene being easily oxidized, and realized the mass production of this material by constantly optimizing the preparation process. This has laid a solid foundation for the large-scale application of MXene in down jackets and wearable devices.

Temperature control system creates exclusive warmth

With the improvement of people's quality of life, consumers put forward higher requirements for the comfort and freedom of movement of down jackets on the basis of meeting the demand for warmth preservation. In the past, people often encountered the embarrassing situation of "hot when moving, cold when stopping" when wearing down jackets, which greatly affected the wearing experience.

To solve this problem, some down jacket manufacturers try to integrate intelligent temperature regulation technology into down jackets. Li Chuang, Director of Brand Management Center of Bosiden Group, introduced in an interview with the reporter of Science and Technology Daily that this technology can accurately sense the human activity state and environmental temperature changes, and automatically adjust the thermal insulation performance of down jackets, relying on special fabric and structural design. Whether the wearer performs vigorous exercise or has a quiet rest, the down jacket can always keep it in a comfortable temperature range, without the trouble of hot and cold.

Take the "Dengfeng 2.0" series down jacket launched by Bosiden Group as an example, its intelligent temperature regulation technology can absorb heat and store energy in high temperature environment, release heat when the external temperature drops, and ensure that users can enjoy the best heat preservation effect regardless of the temperature environment they are in.

On the basis of sewing the flexible circuit into the down jacket, the research and development personnel of Yunjing Technology also designed a temperature control system (also known as "smart brain"), including intelligent algorithms, to achieve accurate temperature control of the down jacket. On the one hand, the "smart brain" can receive real-time data from various micro sensors embedded in the down jacket. By analyzing these data, "smart brain" can accurately judge the current temperature demand of users. For example, if the human body is in motion and the heat production increases, the "smart brain" will recognize this situation according to the motion sensor data, and adjust the heating power in time to reduce the heat generation and avoid overheating of the human body. On the other hand, "intelligent brain" also has the ability to learn. It will record users' temperature regulation habits in different environments and active states, and establish personalized temperature regulation models through in-depth learning. The next time similar situations occur, "Smart Brain" can automatically conduct accurate temperature control based on previous learning results, providing users with exclusive comfortable temperature experience.

"Everyone's perception of temperature is different. Some people think the same temperature is suitable, while others think it is hot and dry. We hope to create a unique heating system for each user by recording each user's manual temperature adjustment operation, and by using in-depth learning technology to understand users in depth." Zhou Yang said.

"Magic Armor" keeps wind and air tight

For outdoor sports enthusiasts, the windproof and breathable performance of down jacket is directly related to their experience of riding freely in nature. In the past, many people were troubled by the traditional down jacket because of its heavy weight and poor air permeability. When wearing it for sports, it is not only limited in movement, but also easy to sweat. Sweat cannot be discharged in time. It is cold and wet when it is attached to the body, which greatly affects the wearing experience and sports state.

In order to solve this problem, Bosiden Group has developed special wind proof, waterproof and moisture permeable functional composite fabrics. Li Chuang introduced that this kind of fabric is like a "magic armor", which can block the cold wind like a solid city wall. At the same time, it has a unique "breathing" ability, allowing the moisture inside the down jacket to be discharged smoothly, so as to keep the interior dry and good permeability. Relevant R&D personnel also built air circulation channels inside the down jacket through special structural design to allow free air circulation.

In outdoor sports scenes such as skiing, when skiers are whirling along the ski track, the down jacket made of new materials can effectively block the howling cold air and prevent a cold wind from getting into the clothes; At the same time, it can quickly discharge the moisture generated by the exercise, avoid the wearer feeling hot and humid, and always keep warm and comfortable. This innovative design undoubtedly finds a balance between warmth preservation and breathability, greatly improving the wearing comfort, and allowing outdoor sports lovers to focus on their favorite sports.

On the basis of ensuring the thermal performance, the lightweight of down jacket has also become the focus of consumers' attention. In order to meet this demand, the research and development personnel of Bosiden Group have designed a thermal filling system for human body to make the distribution of down more scientific. With lightweight fabrics and processes, the weight of down jacket is greatly reduced. Whether it's a long journey or a daily trip, lightweight down jackets can reduce the burden on the body and let the wearer move more freely. (Reporter Zhu Hong)

(Source: Science and Technology Daily)