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William Hurley

Senior Lecturer

Nottingham School of Art & Design

Staff Group(s)
Fashion, knitwear and textile design

Role

As a senior lecturer Will’s currently teaches on both level 4 and 5 for BA (Hons) Fashion Knitwear Design and Knitted Textiles. He specialises in industrial knit technology with particular focus upon design led creative exploitation of the technology.

Will’s primary interest is in how technology innovation can drive the creative process. He has particular interest in how fashion weft knitting, knowledge and technology, can be exploited for novel textile applications.

Career overview

Will has worked within the educational sector over the last 18 years both in research and teaching. He’s fundamental research on the “Development of knitting a shoe upper” for Nike has led to the commercial development of Nike’s “flyknit” product range.

Knitted electro textile research at Manchester University has resulted in an University joint venture company, SmartLife Technology Ltd (SLT). Will is a named inventor with the IPR on knitted transducers assigned to SLT in December 2004.

Research areas

As an active researcher within the ATRG (Advanced Textiles Research Group) Will has been a co-investigator on several funded research projects exploring the use of weft knitting technology, and fashion knitwear practice, in the development of compression garments, electrically active knitted textiles.

Will’s current research focus is in the field of communication textiles and is currently a co-investigator on the “Development of Novel Space Antenna Surface Material and Manufacturing Processes” Materials and Manufacturing Innovate UK.

His research areas include:

  • “3D” knitted textiles
  • Seamless knitting
  • Textiles for communications
  • Medical textiles
  • Electro-active knitted textiles

Sponsors and collaborators

Current research projects and sponsors

  • The development of a novel patient-customised compression sleeve for the treatment of lymphoedema (2015, KTP – Innovate UK)
  • Active simulator cockpit enhancement (2016, 20 months, Horizon 2020)
  • Development of novel space antenna surface material and manufacturing processes Innovate UK 2017-19
  • DeCSA-M: Deployable Cassegrain Antenna for Microsatellites ESA (European Space Agency) 2018

Publications

Selected publications:

"DIAS, T., HURLEY, W., MONARAGALA, R. AND WIJEYESIRIWARDANA, R., 2008. Development of Electrically Active Knitted Structures. Advances In Science & Technology, vol. 60, pp.74 -84 (DOI: 10.4028) ISSN 1662-0356

BEATTY, P.C.W, COOKE, W., DIAS, T., HURLEY, W., MITCHAM, K., MUKHOPADHYAY, S., WIJESIRIWARDANA, R. and SMARTLIFE TECHNOLOGY LTD, 2008. Knitted Transducer Devices: an international patent WO2004/100784 (granted in the EU on 03.09.2008), EP16248000, Bulletin 2008/36; NZ543379 (granted in New Zealand on 14.08.2008), AU2004237945 (granted in Australia on 24.11.2009); CN1882280 (granted in PR China on 26.05.2010); US2009018428 (pending in the USA); CA2525525 (pending in Canada); JP2006-530525 (pending in Japan); IN5344/DELNP/2005 (pending in India)

DIAS, T., BEATTY, P.C.W., HURLEY, W., MITCHAM, K., GRIFFITHS, A.K. AND RAMGULAM, R.B., 2011. Contact Sensors: an international patent publication WO2007/036741, GB2444203 (granted in the UK on 6 April 2011); CA2623171 (pending in China); US2009203984 (pending in USA); EP1976429 (pending in EU); AU2006296395 (pending in Australia)"

See all of William Hurley's publications...