VELOSLUT PADS

5. E-textiles

sensors

E-textiles, or electronic textiles, combine traditional fabric materials with electronic functionality. By embedding sensors, circuits, and microcontrollers into soft substrates, fabrics become interactive and responsive.

Key Concepts

Voltage & Current

Voltage is the electrical pressure that pushes current through a circuit. Current is the flow of electricity, measured in amperes. Together they power electronic components.

Multimeter

A multimeter is a tool to measure voltage, current, and resistance. It’s essential for checking continuity in conductive threads, verifying battery output, and measuring sensor resistance changes.

Conductive Materials

Threads are the silver-coated, stainless steel or copper threads that transmit signals.

Fabrics are the conductive fabrics that act as pads or traces.

Velostat is a pressure-sensitive material that changes resistance.

Copper tape / snap buttons / zippers are also used as connectors.

Microcontrollers in Textiles

Boards like the Arduino Uno, Flora, or ATTINY85 can read sensor input and drive actuators such as LEDs, buzzers, or vibration motors.

REFERENCES & INSPIRATION

To explore soft, wearable sensors, I researched beginner e-textile projects that demonstrate how pressure, movement, and interaction can be captured using conductive materials.

• Hannah Perner-Wilson's Kobakant swatchbook
• Adafruit's conductive fabric tutorials
• Arduino’s basic examples on analogRead and digitalRead

Sensor Ideas

Analog: Pressure-sensitive fabric pad using Velostat and conductive fabric Digital: Tilt sensor made from a soft ball of conductive thread and a bead

These projects show how simple materials can turn fabric into interactive surfaces.

VELOSLUT PADS

PROCESS & WORKFLOW

SENSOR 1: ANALOG PRESSURE PAD

TYPE Analog Sensor (continuous values) FUNCTION Detects varying levels of pressure when pressed.

MATERIALS

• Velostat
• Conductive thread (stainless steel or silver-coated)
• Conductive fabric (2 squares, 3x3cm)
• Felt (base layer)
• Arduino Flora
• Alligator clips (for testing)

STEP BY STEP

• Cut two 3x3 cm conductive fabric squares.
• Cut a 3x3 cm Velostat square.
• Sandwich the Velostat between the two conductive squares.
• Sew conductive thread traces from each fabric square to the edge of the felt swatch (this acts as the soft circuit).
• Connect one end to A0 of the Arduino Flora and the other end to GND using alligator clips.
• Add a 10kΩ resistor between A0 and 5V to form a voltage divider.

CODE

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(9600);
}

void loop() {
  int pressureValue = analogRead(A0);
  Serial.println(pressureValue);
  delay(200);
}

HEART STOMPER

SENSOR 2: DIGITAL TILT/SOFT SWITCH

TYPE Digital Sensor (ON/OFF values) FUNCTION A tilt ball switch closes the circuit when moved.

Inspired by: ankle monitors, wearable therapy for neurodivergent users, and silent alarm devices. Ana Delvey’s ankle monitor also gave me the courage to make wearable tech fun + taboo.

MATERIALS

• Adafruit Flora
• Velostat (cut into shoe sole shape)
• Copper tape (contact layers)
• Felt/fabric layers (insulation & structure)
• Conductive thread & wire clamps
• 100kΩ resistor (voltage divider)
  

STEP BY STEP PROCESS

Cut velostat into sole shape and layer it between copper tape contacts

Sandwich the velostat + copper tape together to create an analog pressure pad

Connect one copper tape lead to 5V, the other to A0 on the Arduino Flora with a 100kΩ pulldown resistor.

Connect the buzzer to D8, use digitalWrite() to toggle based on input.

Test by stepping on the pad. Pressure lowers resistance, increasing analog values. Values can be verified using the Serial Monitor in Arduino IDE.

Stitch or clamp wires with felt or elastic to keep them stable.

CIRCUIT SCHEMATIC

Component	Pin	Function
Velostat	A0	Analog pressure
Buzzer	D8	Sound Output

CODE

int sensorPin = 9;   // select the input pin for the potentiometer
int ledPin = 7;      // select the pin for the LED
int sensorValue;  // variable to store the value coming from the sensor
int delayVal = 100;
int buzz = 10;

void setup() {
  // declare the ledPin as an OUTPUT:
  pinMode(ledPin, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(buzz, OUTPUT);
  Serial.begin(9600);
}

void loop() {
  // read the value from the sensor:
  sensorValue = analogRead(sensorPin);
  Serial.println(sensorValue);
  // turn the ledPin on
  if (sensorValue == 0){
    digitalWrite (ledPin, HIGH);
  } else { 
    digitalWrite(ledPin, LOW);
  }

  if (sensorValue == 0){
    digitalWrite (buzz, HIGH);
  } else { 
    digitalWrite(buzz, LOW);
  }
  // stop the program for <sensorValue> milliseconds:
  delay(delayVal);
}

RESULTS

Analog Sensor: Successfully captured foot pressure with Velostat pad.

Digital Actuator: Triggered buzzer and LEDs when threshold crossed, creating a reactive stomp interface.

Learning Outcomes

Understood difference between analog (continuous) and digital (ON/OFF) signals.

Practiced making hard-soft connections using copper tape, Velostat, and Arduino wiring.

Used Serial Monitor to validate sensor readings.

Future Improvements

Replace buzzer with vibration motor for subtle haptic feedback.

Fully integrate into a soft circuit shoe insert without breadboard/wires.

Explore silent alarm applications for overstimulation or safety alerts.