In celebration of its 60th anniversary, Shima Seiki shared a collection of online events. Keynote speeches by industry experts as well as videos showcasing Shima Seiki’s technological and software capabilities presented a snapshot of the innovation Shima has created over the past six decades.

Building relationships with institutions to further innovation in a variety of fields has been an important part of Shima Seiki’s growth. A keynote presentation from MIT Media Lab (Cambridge, Massachusetts) director Dr. Dava Newman detailed how their research utilises Shima Seiki technology, whilst sharing what the next decade holds for their partnership together. Amongst the collective research threads Dr Newman shared surrounding complex systems, human machine networks and transformative technologies, a particularly exciting knitted research development ‘Second Skin Design, BioSuitTM for Human 2.0’ was discussed.

Shima’s 3D knitting technologies are being utilised within this research process at MIT Media Lab by advancing the Media Lab’s knitted body suit performance. The project is exploring methods of achieving maximum flex and extension capabilities within the elbow area of the suit, with integrated pressure sensors. The aim is to create a ‘second skin’ knitted body suit, custom made to the wearer which can be utilised in interplanetary explorations. These cross-sector collaborations are an exciting part of Shima’s ever growing industrial network.

Read the full report on Knitting Industry Creative