Xelflex fabric uses light to detect moves

UK-based Cambridge Consultants has shown off a smart clothing technology which turns the very fabric of clothing into sensors.

The Xelflex technology uses fibre-optic strands woven directly into fabric.

The ultra-thin, water-resistant cables can each hold up to 10 sensors, which measure light in place of more traditional regular motion sensors. The resulting data is then transmitted from a body pack via Bluetooth to a smartphone, where algorithms are applied to interpret the information.

Cambridge Consultants believes the low-cost, unobtrusive solution could be useful in analysing movement in joints and measuring overall posture, for everyone from sports enthusiasts to gamers as an input mechanism.

But is this yet another concept in wearable technology which will fail to gain traction?

The BBC's North America Technology correspondent Richard Taylor spoke to the Xelflex co-inventor Duncan Smith to find out more.

You can follow Richard on Twitter @RichTaylorBBC, external