Electromechanical properties of knitted fabric integrated with laser engraved carbon-loaded fiber

In this article, the electromechanical properties of laser-engraved carbon-loaded fiber integrated with knitted fabric are investigated theoretically and experimentally. The fabric can be used as flexible strain sensor due to the change of resistance caused by change of the fabric configuration. In order to improve the sensitivity, linearity, repeatability of the knitted fabric strain sensor, laser treatment and integration with knitted structure are proposed. It can be seen from the results that the sensitivity of the fiber can be improved by laser engraving due to the change of the rigidity of fiber and conductive contacts created by laser corrosion on the surface of fiber. The repeatability of the integrated fabrics is improved due to the push effect created by fabric structures. Meanwhile, the linearity of fabric sensor with laser-treated fiber is higher than that without laser treatment due to the fiber pretension applied by fabric structure and the decrease of rigidity of fiber.