Osram And Uvex Integrate LEDs Into Clothing

Osram working with protective clothing maker Uvex has announced its products for textile illumination to production. Uvex will show the range of safety vests and a softshell jacket equipped with active LED lighting at the iA+A International Trade Fair for Safety, Security and Health at Work in Dusseldorf from October 17 to 20.

The light modules are LED-based and an integrated part of the clothing. They are battery-powered via a USB port, ensuring active illumination at all times, thus improving safety when working in the dark or in poor visibility conditions. The clothing can be washed in the washing machine along with the integrated light guides.

The light modules were already tested last year under extreme conditions at an altitude of just under 3,000 metres in an ice hockey game played on the Zugspitze. In the next step, Osram plans to combine light modules with sensor technology: This will in future allow various applications to be controlled using an app. Possible examples include sports clothing that warns the wearer about a high pulse rate via the light guides, or a cycling jacket with an integrated brake light.