Role
Kalana Marasinghe is a Research Fellow in Electronic Yarns in the Advanced Textiles Research Group at Nottingham Trent University. He graduated from King's College London with his BEng in Mechanical Engineering in 2012 and proceeded to University College London for his Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. After a year in the field of building services and construction as a mechanical engineer, Kalana took on a technology entrepreneur role in MAS Holding’s innovations division, "twinery" for 5 years. During his time at twinery Kalana started in the global open innovation hub focussing on product innovation and problem solving, he then proceeded to the wearable technology division where he developed products, technology, and processes in the field of smart textiles.
Research areas
Kalana's research focusses on the integration of electronics in textiles. His studies will lead to unlocking manufacturing capabilities of E-yarns at a large scale that will make way for the apparel industry to feasibly manufacture electronically active smart clothing .
Key areas of research:
- Direct-to-wire reflow soldering
- Digital prototyping
- Thermodynamic modelling of soldering processes
- Mechanical integrity of E-yarns
- Automated manufacturing system design
- E-yarn manufacturing process development
The manufactured E-yarns can be knitted and woven into fabrics that are breathable, drapable and washable paving a pathway towards:
- Illuminated fabric
- Temperature sensing fabric
- Pressure sensing fabrics
- Energy harvesting clothing
More information about the work conducted by the Advanced Textiles Research Group (ATRG) is available at www.e-yarns.com