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# Carter: DoD-MIT Partnership to Produce Fabrics That See, Hear, Sense

By Cheryl Pellerin

                WASHINGTON  –              
Defense Secretary Ash Carter today announced that DoD is partnering with an 89-member consortium to establish anew manufacturinginnovation institute focused on revolutionaryfibers and textiles.

Speaking this morning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management in Cambridge, Carter said that Advanced Functional Fabrics of America is a competitivelyselected group of companies, universities, non-profits, research organizations and startup incubators organized by MIT. 01:05VIDEO  | 01:05 |Carter on Partnering with Advanced Functional Fabrics of America

“This is apioneeringfieldcombiningfibers andyarns with ... flexibleintegrated circuits, LEDs, solarcells, electronicsensors and other capabilities to createfabrics and cloths that can see, hear, sense,communicate, storeenergy,regulatetemperature, monitorhealth, change colorand much more,” the secretary added.

The department is makinga$75 million investment that has been matched morethanthreetimes over with morethan $240 million dollars in contributions from public- and private-sectorpartners, he said.

**Revolutionary Textiles**

Revolutionaryfibers andtextiles have enormous potential forthedefensemission, Carter added, noting that lightweight sensors woven into thenylon ofparachutes will beableto catch small tears that might otherwise expand in midair and risk paratroopers’lives. 01:11VIDEO  | 01:11 |Carter on Revolutionary Fibers

Uniforms with electronicsembedded intheir fibers will detect potential chemical and radiological agents, help powernetworked devices that troops carry into the field and know if a wounded service memberneedsan anti-bacterial bandage, he said. Tents whose fabrics generate andstoretheirown power and regulatethetemperatureinside will reducefuel consumption in the field.

“The realityis that ... wedon’t knowall the advances this newtechnology will makepossible,” Carter said, “that’s the remarkablethingabout innovation, and it’s another reason why Americaand America’smilitary must get there first.”

In the commercial world, such technical textiles will fuel the drive toward wearables. He added.

**Pushing the Envelope**

Running shoes as lightweight as socks will senseimpact load for everystep, he said, new fibers will strengthen walls and floors in buildings and otherstructures, first responders will wear ultralight firefighting gear that is moreprotective against thehottest flames, and washable featherweight sensors embedded in clothing will offer a clearer picture of health and fitness.

To stay ahead ofthe world’s growing and diverse challenges, Carter said the department is investing aggressivelyin innovation.

“We’repushingthe envelopewith research into new technologies like robotics, biotech, cyberdefense,electronicwarfareand hypersonicengines that canflyoverfivetimes thespeed ofsound,” he said. 00:48VIDEO  | 00:48 |Carter on New Technologies

The department is buildingon-ramps and off-ramps so technical talent can flow in and out of the Pentagon, Carter added, “so moreofAmerica’s brightest minds can contributeto ourmission ofnational defense ... and so ourmilitaryandcivilian technologists and theinnovativedefenseindustrythat alreadysupports us can interact in newways with the entire innovative ecosystem.”

**New Partnerships**

DoD also is developingnew partnerships with innovativeprivate-sector and technologycommunities in places like Boston and Silicon Valley,Austin and Seattle,and other hubs of unrivalled U.S. innovation, the secretary said.

President Barack Obama has established seven other manufacturing innovation institutes over the past four years and DoD has helped lead five of them, Carter said, in areas like3-D printing, lightweight metals, integrated photonics, digital manufacturing and design and flexiblehybrid electronics.

“This will ensure that theinnovations needed to develop, manufactureand commercializethese cutting-edgematerials will happen right herein America,” he added.

(Follow Cheryl Pellerin on Twitter: @PellerinDoDNews)

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## Related Links

Remarks by Secretary Carter on a Major Announcement in new Technology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology

## Related Sites

The National Advanced Manufacturing Portal

Ash CarterSecDefForce of the Future