journal article·2026-05Open access

Knitted Pneumatic Fabrics for Dynamic Pressure Modulation in Personalized Healthcare Wearables

Xiaoyu Chen, Jintu Fan, Rong Zheng, Qing Chen, Fengxin Sun, Huanhuan Liu

Advanced Science· Volume 13· Issue 27

Abstract

ABSTRACT Wearable pneumatic textiles hold significant potential for healthcare applications, particularly in preventing and treating stress‐related injuries and diseases. Current pneumatic healthcare wearables often suffer from undesired multidirectional expansion of air chambers, poor conformability to complex body contours, and difficulty in achieving controllable pressure gradients required for medical applications. To overcome these issues, herein, a Pneumatic Pressure‐Regulating Knitted Fabric (PPKF) was developed. Its design utilizes a knitted pneumatic circuit to seamlessly integrate an ultralow‐expansion pneumatic fiber within a dual‐channel structure. Ultralow radial expansion (≤ 1.41%) of pneumatic fiber enables controlled contractile deformation when embedded within knit structures. By strategically modulating channel spacing, PPKF achieves dynamic pressure modulation, delivering adjustable pressures (3–32 kPa) and clinically relevant gradient compression ratios (100.0%, 77.6%, 51.8%, 31.0%, 14.6%). PPKF‐based garments exhibit superior wearability, including breathability (949.56 mm/s), excellent fit, and minimal deformation (≤ 5.2%), outperforming commercially available alternatives. The integrated PPKF manufacturing strategy establishes a structure‐driven paradigm, providing new design principles for pressure‐regulating knitted textiles with enhanced wearability and multifunctionality. Substantial implementation potential is demonstrated across medical rehabilitation, aerospace systems, and athletic protection.
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Research context

OpenAlex topics: Advanced Sensor and Energy Harvesting Materials · Textile materials and evaluations · Pressure Ulcer Prevention and Management

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

College of Fashion and Design Donghua University Shanghai China

School of Fashion and Textiles The Hong Kong Polytechnic University Hong Kong China

Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion and School of Fashion and Textiles PolyU Xingguo Technology and Innovation Research Institute Hong Kong China

Shanghai International Fashion Innovation Center Donghua University Shanghai China

Laboratory of Soft Fibrous Materials & Physics Jiangnan University Wuxi China

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China

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