Design of e-textiles for acoutsic applications

• Main Author: Shenoy, Ravi Rangnath
• Other Authors: Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Format: Others
• Published: Virginia Tech 2011
• Subjects: Beamforming; DOA; Source Localization; e-textiles; Microphone array
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10919/9608; http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-10292003-122518

The concept of replacing threads with flexible wires and sensors in a fabric to provide an underlying platform for integrating electronic components is known as e-textiles. This concept can be used to design applications involving different types of electronic components including sensors, digital signal processors, microcontrollers, color-changing fibers, and power sources. The adaptability of the textiles to the needs of the individual and the functionality of electronics can be integrated to provide unobtrusive, robust, and inexpensive clothing with novel features. This thesis focuses on the design of e-textiles for acoustic signal processing applications. This research examines challenges encountered when developing e-textile applications involving distributed arrays of microphones. A framework for designing such applications is presented. The design process and the performance analysis of two e-textiles, a large-scale beamforming fabric and a speech-processing vest, are presented. === Master of Science