Hybrid Textiles

Once touched – a lot happens

 The task: heating by tapping, with low weight and low energy requirements. The solution, made by Textildruckerei Mayer: a textile, easily deformable carrier material is printed with a 3D heating paste made of carbon nanotubes. The result is a hybrid textile – a textile surface heating – which is recommended, for example, as a door lining in electric vehicles. It is easy to operate by touch, because the sensors are printed on at the same time.

Their heat output is around ten watts. Radiated from the surface of the driver's and front passenger's door, this ensures a pleasant warmth in the interior. Since the heating paste has hardly any heat loss, energy-efficient interval heating is sufficient.

There is also space for additional functionalities, because the heating paste is printed on the back of the textile. So how about a window regulator? For this purpose, a conductive carbon paste is applied to the front – and a gentle touch provides a breath of fresh air.

Highlights:

• Touch function thanks to imprinted sensors
• Higher energy efficiency than conventional filament heating
• Light and flexible processing
• Minimum weight

Background:

Our hybrid textiles arose from the idea of combining fiber composites with multiple functions. These "intelligent fabrics" can heat, switch via sensor and light up. They are preferably used in lightweight construction and in electromobility.