Sewing Robots

Most interesting direction,  change the materials to conform to the robotics.  I recall seeing some of the same videos which showed how human-complex sewing is.

It was pointed out to me that the precise alignment of the placement of the garment is not shown, and this is difficult, and still a challenge.

Videos at the link.    In FastCompany: 

Is This Sewing Robot The Future Of Fashion?
Startup Sewbo has figured out how to get a machine to sew an entire garment, and it may finally push clothing factories to fully automate. ....

 .... In the past, companies tried to create complicated mechanical devices to emulate the way a human sews, which "is a very difficult and complicated approach," explains Zornow. Instead, he took a different tack, manipulating the materials to make them compatible with robots.

He realized that if he stiffened the fabrics by drenching them in liquid polymers, they could be turned into thermoplastic composites and treated like hard materials. And robots need hard materials.

"They’re stiff as a board, but they can be molded: You can apply heat and reshape them, and when they cool down, they’ll hold their shape," explains Zornow. The machine sews through the stiffened fabric to produce a perfectly finished product. (The process can be used with any sewing machine and most robotic arms, which generally cost about $35,000.) Afterwards, the polymers can be easily washed off with water, no detergent necessary.  ... " 

Robotic Fabrics for Active Clothing

Out of Purdue University, new developments.  Robotics need not be standalone, they can combine with  us in surprising ways.

Robotic fabric could bring 'active clothing,' wearable robots

Researchers are developing a robotic fabric that moves and contracts and is embedded with sensors, an approach that could bring "active clothing" and a new class of "soft" robots.

Such an elastic technology could make possible robots that have sensory skin, stretchable robotic garments that people might wear for added strength and endurance, "g-suits" for pilots or astronauts to counteract the effects of acceleration, and lightweight, versatile robots to roam alien landscapes during space missions.

The robotic fabric is a cotton material containing sensors made of a flexible polymer and threadlike strands of a shape-memory alloy that return to a coiled shape when heated, causing the fabric to move.

"We have integrated both actuation and sensing, whereas most robotic fabrics currently in development feature only sensing or other electronic components that utilize conductive thread," said Rebecca Kramer, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue University. "We also use standard sewing techniques to introduce the thread-like actuators and sensors into the fabric, so they could conceivably be integrated into the existing textile manufacturing infrastructure."   ... '