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 LIKE A GLOVE: Naomi Campbell's clothes need no alteration, but mere mortals have fitting problems
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The cutting edge of fashion technology
Scanners that read the body's contours are set to revolutionise the clothing industry and change shopping forever. PENELOPE ODY reportsTHERE you are, sitting in front of your interactive digital television set some time in the next few years, wondering what that chic little dress on the knitting-needle-thin model will actually look like on you. Suddenly, at the flick of a switch, the proportions change and you can see that . . . well, it's not quite as bad as it might have been, and maybe it will be worth ordering one after all. Electronically wrapping the latest fashions around an exact 3-D image of the customer's body is just one of the applications being developed by researchers at University College London in conjunction with the Japanese scanner specialists Hamamatsu Photonics. Hamamatsu has been producing optical scanners - generally used in medical applications - for the past 40 years and its latest development, the 3-D BodyLine Scanner, is already used in Japan by a leading underwear chain to measure customers for made-to-measure corsetry. "The system effectively maps a cloud of around 300 000 points matching the body's shape," explains Professor Philip Treleaven, who specialises in electronic commerce applications at UCL. "We then use artificial intelligence to turn this into exact body measurements relevant for clothing producers." The fashion companies have been interested in body scanners since they first appeared a few years ago, hoping this could provide the answer both to better-fitting clothes for the ready-to-wear mass market and low-cost custom-made clothing to match today's emphasis on personalisation in sales. A major problem has been the technology: the early scanners were about the same size as the average living room. The Bodyline is an obvious improvement: at around 2,5m high by 1,5m wide, it would fit easily into the average store's changing cubicle and it can create that 300 000-dot point cloud in around 10 to 12 seconds. "An arm with eight scanner heads simply moves from the top of the machine to the bottom while the person stands in the middle," says Atsushi Tsujimura, Hamamatsu's UK managing director. Shoppers would need to strip to their undies to be scanned, but otherwise it is a simple and quick procedure. Treleaven says: "We're looking at three possible applications in the clothing arena for the system: improving garment sizes; developing rapid measuring systems for custom-made clothing; and 3-D retailing, which would allow shoppers to see exactly what a garment looks like on them without the need to try it on." His team is also looking at medical projects using the scanner to calculate precise body mass or skin surface area. These calculations are important in determining drug doses in children, for example. Back in the world of clothing, exact sizing is a rather more mundane but equally problematic area. As any shopper knows, sizes can vary significantly between brands. While a 14 from fashion brand A fits like a dream, when it comes to label B or C a 16, or maybe even a 12, will be needed. Experienced mail-order buyers habitually solve the problem by ordering at least two sizes of each style and sending one back. The manufacturers depend on regular national sizing surveys to tell them how the average shape is changing - whether our waists are narrowing or our busts getting larger - but these depend on physically measuring many thousands of volunteers, which is time-consuming and expensive. Far better and more accurate, say the fashion makers, to regularly scan a few thousand shoppers instead. There is even greater interest in the made-to-measure option, which would avoid the need for staff to measure customers, regarded by many as invasive. "We are continually asking whether we need customised clothing," says Marks & Spencer's manager of general merchandise technology, Jerry Dunleavy. "There is a need, but the technology companies have not satisfied me that they can produce the goods that are required." Treleaven believes the solution is almost at hand. "The clothing industry needs 70 body measurements," he says, "and we're 50 percent of the way there. "I expect within 12 to 18 months we'll have what the manufacturers want and our first users will be in place. It could take off very quickly after that." Atsushi Tsujimura is equally confident: "I think we'll see our first customers within six months," he says. Retail time scales are a little longer. "We should be able to implement this technology soon, possibly within the next two years," says Rosie Coveney, technical services manager at Next. Having scanned the shopper and calculated those 70 vital statistics, the information could then be stored on a smart card - which is where the application really gets interesting. This card, suggests Treleaven, could be used at in-store kiosks to match a catalogue of ready-made styles to a customer's exact shape. It would also be possible to see exactly what the person would look like - or it could provide measurements for customised clothing. And, with spare smart-card reader/writer slots planned for the new generation of digital television set-top boxes, the same card could also be used for home shopping orders, allowing customers to select the size they need accurately at home. "Mail-order clothing doesn't usually appeal to upmarket shoppers," says Treleaven, "but use the wrap-around technique on TV and it would be perfect for busy consumers." - © The Telegraph, London Top of page
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