An evolving technology will allow people to wear or carry so called wired fabrics. This new technology may provide smart investors with opportunities to get in on the ground floor. And the same new technology may result in investors losing their money, thinking that they are picking new winners when they are just throwing good money after bad. Is it time to invest in wired fabrics? To invest in wired fabrics at this point may be like choosing between Betamax and VHS in the early days of home video. Those who chose the technically better product lost out. Those who assumed that the video tape would last forever lost out as video discs came into being. Although there may be a great number of uses for wired fabrics, will it be profitable to invest in wired fabrics, or their manufacturers?
What Is a Wired Fabric?
Think of a handkerchief sized bit of fabric. Now think of taking it out of your pocket, placing it on a table, and connecting it via a thin cable to your computer. Now think of using the fabric as a keyboard for your computer. Wired fabrics are referred to as “micro electromechanical systems.” The treads in such a piece of fabric can sense pressure. When a person touches the fabric the thread in question flattens and its electrical conduction changes. A grid of these threads is configured in such a way that the attached computer or other device receives a signal. The threads in question are coated in a polymer that conducts electricity. The so called sensor threads in such a device are what makes them feasible and makes it possible to invest in wired fabrics and get rich from consumer sales. The underlying questions, as always, are what sort of applications will make use of this technology, how much will these apps cost to make and how much will people pay for them? How to invest in stocks that make products from this technology is still not clear. But, here are a few ideas.
A T-Shirt Scrolling Message – “Eat At Joe’s”
If you think that you might like to invest in wired fabrics and their applications it might be useful to think of just how this technology could be used. Because it is possible to weave biological LED’s into fabric as well one could imagine images projected on a garment. This would allow the fashion industry to create a basic design and allow the wearer to change colors each evening or even let a lady change the color of her evening dress at will. Imagine ads for Joe’s diner or an upcoming rock concert scrolling across the back of a jacket.
Health Care Products
Because there are heat-sensing textiles it is possible to monitor body temperature as well as other vital signs via a vest with a configuration of polymer wires. Invest in wired fabrics in this case and you are investing in health care products.
Real and Not Counterfeit
A realistic use for such fabrics is to include them in high fashion items such as a Gucci purse. The purse could be “read” with a scanner to show that it is the real deal with a specific ID number, etc.
From Room Sized Computers to Hand Held Devices to a Computer on Your Sleeve
A hand held computer was once the stuff of fantasy. Today we can invest in wired fabrics with a possible result being computer circuitry woven into the garment that you are wearing! Fundamental analysis at this point is difficult as apps and markets are now unclear. However, keeping an eye on this technology is keeping an eye on the future.
More Resources
FREE MASTERCLASS: 3 Secrets to Take Control of Your Financial Future!