Is this what the jacket of the future looks like? Yes and no!
The down jacket without down looks futuristic - and it is. Thanks to a new material, it can absorb near-infrared light from the sun and convert it into heat. The Solament jacket was presented at the international sports trade fair ISPO.
The fact that sunlight warms is nothing new in itself. However, the Japanese mining company Sumitomo Metal Mining has succeeded in further enhancing the heat effect of the sun. With the help of a material made from the chemical elements tungsten (tungsten) and caesium, it is said to convert near-infrared radiation (IR-A) into heat. According to the company, the material absorbs light waves in the range from 780 nm to 1400 nm, which, unlike other wavelengths, only generate a small amount of heat. It converts these into longer, warming waves.
The transparent buffer jacket is intended to show what is possible
The see-through jacket from the Solament brand attracts attention, no question about it. However, it is unlikely that we will all be walking around in transparent down jackets without down in the future. The Japanese company, which developed the basis for the new fabric, collaborated with fashion designer Kosuke Tsumura to show the potential of the technology and not to launch a transparent jacket. "It's a concept piece that won't be available to buy," says Keisuke Ishibashi, Solaments Project Lead, whom I meet at ISPO. The project was realised with the Droga5 Tokyo agency.
Source: Siri Schubert
The Sumitomo Metal Mining Group, founded in 1590, developed the nanomaterial back in 2002. It is already used in greenhouses and in the automotive industry. The idea of incorporating it into a yarn for a jacket came from the need to find new applications.
Active Wear should be less conspicuous but more practical
I was able to try the jacket on briefly. It's not suitable for me in this form for hiking or other outdoor activities, if only because it's too big. However, I could imagine the material being useful in other, less conspicuous jackets. Solamente already designs such jackets under the Active Wear label. After all, maintaining a balanced body temperature is still a major challenge when hiking, skiing, running and doing other outdoor sports.
I'm not the only one fascinated by the jacket, whose name is made up of "Solar" and "Element". It has already won an IF Design Award, a Red Dot Award and a Clio Silver Award. At the international sports trade fair ISPO, it reached the Top Ten Textrends for outerwear.
Research diver, outdoor guide and SUP instructor – I love being in, on and around water. Lakes, rivers and the ocean are my playgrounds. For a change of perspective, I look at the world from above while trail running or flying drones.