Conventional wisdom in wearable technology suggests tighter is better – that sensors need close contact with the skin to accurately track movement. But new research from King’s College London (KCL) challenges that assumption, demonstrating that loose clothing can actually improve motion tracking accuracy. The findings, detailed in Nature Communications, could pave the way for more comfortable and discreet wearable devices, and even revolutionize robotics research.
The study reveals that sensors embedded in loose fabric can predict and capture body movements with 40 percent greater accuracy, while requiring 80 percent less data, compared to sensors directly attached to the skin. This counterintuitive result stems from the way loose fabric behaves during movement. According to Dr. Matthew Howard, a reader in engineering at KCL, “When you start to move your arm, a loose sleeve doesn’t just sit there; it folds, billows, and shifts in complex ways – reacting more sensitively to the movements than a tighter fitting sensor.” He describes the fabric as acting like a “mechanical amplifier,” making movement easier to detect.
This discovery has significant implications for a wide range of applications. The most immediate impact could be on consumer health and fitness devices. Current wearables, like Fitbits and smartwatches, often require a snug fit to function effectively, which can be uncomfortable for extended wear. The KCL research suggests a future where health tracking is integrated into everyday clothing – perhaps through sensors attached to buttons or incorporated into the fabric itself – offering a more natural and comfortable experience.
Beyond consumer tech, the research holds promise for medical applications. Dr. Irene Di Giulio, senior lecturer in anatomy and biomechanics at KCL, explains that current motion-tracking technology sometimes struggles to capture subtle movements, hindering accurate data collection for conditions like Parkinson’s disease. “Sometimes, a patient’s movements are too small for a tight wristband to catch and therefore People can’t always get the most accurate data on how conditions like Parkinson’s are affecting people’s everyday lives,” she said. The ability to track movement with greater sensitivity, using sensors in loose clothing, could allow for more accurate remote monitoring of patients in their homes or care facilities, and facilitate the collection of vital data for research and the development of new therapies.
The benefits extend beyond healthcare and consumer electronics. The researchers also believe their findings could transform the field of robotics. Robotics research often relies on learning from human behavior to develop more natural and intuitive robot movements. However, collecting the vast amounts of data needed for this process can be challenging, as people are often reluctant to wear restrictive motion-capture suits during their daily routines. Dr. Howard notes that “a lot of robotics research is about learning from human behaviour for robots to mimic, but to do this you need huge amounts of data collected from every day human movements, and not many people are willing to strap up in a Lycra suit and go about their daily business.” Discreet sensors embedded in everyday clothing could provide a solution, enabling the collection of “internet-scale” human behavior data needed to revolutionize robotics.
The research team tested sensors on a variety of fabrics, using both human and robotic subjects performing a range of movements. They consistently found that the loose-fabric approach identified movements faster and with greater accuracy than conventional methods using straps and tight-fitting garments. The fabric-based system was able to distinguish between very similar or subtle movements that might be missed by more rigid sensors.
This isn’t the first exploration of fabric-based sensing. Research published in Sensors in 2023 by Shen et al. Also investigated probabilistic models for human activity recognition using loose clothing, and a 2024 article highlighted embedding textile capacitive sensing into smart wearables. However, the KCL study specifically quantifies the performance benefits of looseness, demonstrating a significant improvement in accuracy and data efficiency. The team’s work, accepted for publication in December 2025, builds on a growing body of research indicating the potential of “smart clothing” as a viable alternative to traditional wearable technology.
The researchers are now exploring ways to integrate sensors into everyday clothing items, such as shirts and dresses, with the goal of creating discreet and comfortable wearable devices. The potential for adding sensors to simple elements like buttons offers a particularly promising avenue for development, moving away from the bulky and often intrusive designs of current wearable tech. The findings suggest a future where technology seamlessly integrates into our lives, providing valuable insights into our health and behavior without compromising comfort or convenience.
