FEEDBACK-CONTROLLED SPORTS BRA

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Currently available sports bras are inadequate for medium to large-busted women who participate in medium to high impact fitness activities. As there is no physiological means to stiffen the breast or damp its motion, the availability of an effective sports bra represents the fulcrum point in the tradeoff between inactivity and discomfort during exercise. Breast motion can be artificially damped, however, through the use of feedback control principles, whereby breast motion is suppressed by a control signal. The objective of the current proposal is to demonstrate feasibility of a feedback-controlled sports bra. Exercise causes the breasts to bounce, with the same basic characteristics as acceleration sensors: Skin elasticity and cup size (mass) determine resonant frequency, while the fitness activity provides the input acceleration. The proposed research will develop a new sports bra that incorporates phase lead feedback control. Prototype bras will be designed and tested, and performance will be compared to currently available sports bras. Technical feasibility will be determined by comparing damping ratios (DRs) obtained from frequency response plots. An ideal sports bra provides critical damping (DR = 1), and technical feasibility will be determined by demonstrating that a feedback-controlled sports bra has a DR closer to unity than a currently available sports bra. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: There is a strong customer need for an improved bra. The proposed bra would have a competitive advantages over currently existing sports bras, such as superior performance, product differentiation and brand identity. The overall sports bra market in the United States in 1999 was $450 million (retail), and so the commercial potential of the proposed bra is well-defined.