Concept Development and Interaction Design for Wearable Systems

Wearable systems with embedded electronics or electronic textiles are maturing and appear not only in specialized applications for health monitoring, protective and performance gear, but have also begun to appear in fashion “applications”. The design of such systems, regardless of their use, can greatly benefit from the field of interaction design and a collaborative framework. This paper discusses the principles and tensions of interaction design and points to how it can be applied to the design of wearable systems. The paper also underlines the important characteristics of wearable design as these relate to the human body and its embodied experiences.