Using rigorous science, Gore researchers lead the way in the study of comfort
GORE-TEX brand uses the term ‘Comfort Science’ to describe how it improves comfort in apparel by studying what makes users uncomfortable.
When researching high-performance apparel, today’s consumers are bombarded with a dizzying array of technologies promising what are often unprovable benefits. At its core, though, most consumers are after something quite simple - does a piece of technical apparel help them feel perceivably better?
W.L Gore & Associates, via its GORE-TEX product brands, has invested in a huge range of one-of-a-kind equipment that allow its scientists to test, study and quantify aspects of fabric technology that few other companies are able to test. At Gore facilities, virtually no test equipment is “off the shelf.” It was all purpose-built by Gore, because nothing previously existed to do the kind of testing that Gore researchers felt it was necessary to do. This includes a unique-in-the-world environmental chamber that simulates more than 85 percent of the world’s climates in a controlled setting. All this equipment is used in concert with extensive field testing.
Gore uses rigorous scientific processes to determine not just facts and figures, but how seemingly small changes in materials can lead to big gains in how the person wearing a garment or footwear feels. By studying at what points in test processes users start to feel discomfort, Gore scientists are then able to provide data that tells research and development teams how they could effectively improve comfort. This is Comfort Science.
“What’s fundamentally different at the GORE-TEX brand is we don’t just engineer materials. We also study how those materials can best be used, and how they change the way people feel. We’re looking at the relationship between materials science and the human perception of comfort,” said Ray Davis, Comfort Lab Manager, at the W.L. Gore & Associates Fabrics Division. “Few others in the world can go from understanding scientific changes at the material level to how those materials can most effectively be used to improve comfort for the end user.”
Four recent or emerging GORE-TEX technologies show what kinds of results Gore achieves using Comfort Science to guide its work:
GORE-TEX INFINIUM™ THERMIUM™ Footwear: A new kind of footwear versatility for both indoors and outside
The challenge: Fully insulated footwear works in cold conditions, but the users’ feet overheat as the temperature rises or the person goes indoors. The consequence is that people use two different pairs of shoes in the winter, one for outside – be it in the city or mountain - and a separate pair for indoors. Moreover, insulated footwear is usually bulky and can be aesthetically unappealing.
What Gore learned from Comfort Science to benefit consumers: A person’s feet (and even their body) will get cold when the toes get cold, so conversely, if you keep the toes warm, it keeps the feet and body warm without needing to insulate the footwear throughout.
The Scientific process used: Gore used foot manikins with thermal sensors (replicas it created of feet) to understand the amounts and distribution of insulation required to keep the feet and body perceivably warmer using an innovative and super-thin new insulation created by Gore scientists. Compiling data around these tests helped dictate the exact places to locate that insulation in footwear to make users feel perceivably warmer in cold conditions and not overheat in warmer conditions.
The consumer benefit for the end user: New GORE-TEX INFINIUM™ THERMIUM™ footwear technology places an ultra-thin, efficiently mapped insulation only around your toes, which is where your foot gets cold first, and thus, your feet stay warm outdoors without getting too warm indoors.
GORE-TEX footwear with GORE® INVISIBLE FIT: Making lightweight waterproof running shoes feel like regular running shoes
The challenge: Running through the grass on a dewy morning or during a late afternoon shower can result in wet running shoes, which leads not only to discomfort but sometimes to problems like blisters. While adding a waterproof and breathable membrane to running shoes makes shoes more versatile for outdoor use, the construction techniques used in the past for making a waterproof/breathable running shoe could still result in a less-than-ideal fit and feel. The membrane could create wrinkles in a shoe as well as a slightly altered fit compared to running shoes without a waterproof membrane. In running footwear specifically, this often meant that people sized up half a size to compensate. Some also could feel the added layer of the waterproof membrane as it folded when walking or running.
What Gore learned from Comfort Science to benefit consumers: Given that fit comfort is the top factor for consumers choosing running footwear, Gore sought to use lab testing and consumer studies to understand how it could more effectively incorporate a waterproof and breathable membrane into lightweight footwear in such a way that it removed any fit and feel differences when compared to shoes without a membrane.
The Scientific process used: Gore used a variety of imaging techniques, including CT scans, a process that makes use of computer-processed combinations of many measurements taken from different angles, to study the cross-sections of different footwear with and without a GORE-TEX membrane. This was done in order to understand how the internal volume of a shoe changed with the incorporation of GORE-TEX materials. From this work, Gore learned where and how the changes in volume impacted the perception of fit and comfort. That, in turn, led to new ways of thinking about how to incorporate a membrane earlier in the construction process of a shoe. This work was then validated through a series of consumer-perception studies.
The consumer benefit for the end user: Because the waterproof/breathable membrane is added to the upper materials of a shoe prior to construction, as opposed to a bootie that is inserted after the uppers are sewn, the waterproof/breathable membrane is able to effectively disappear in the construction process. The result is shoes that fit and feel like footwear that doesn’t contain a waterproof layer.
New GORE-TEX PRO Product Technologies: Taking a best-in-class technology to the next level of performance for unrestricted movement and ergonomic comfort
The challenge: There wasn’t a problem to address with GORE-TEX PRO fabric. PRO has been considered the industry standard in durable waterproof/breathable fabrics for extreme weather conditions for many years. Still, Gore knew it could move the bar forward in performance. Part of performance is recognizing that end-users want a garment that offers very little resistance against their movements and, at the same time, can be worn with different layers underneath and still look good. However, people’s activity levels change throughout the day, and while the GORE-TEX PRO hardshell remains a constant, the mid- and/or base layers worn underneath change based on the amount of heat a user’s body is expelling during varying activity levels and temperatures. Chances are, people put on and take off layers a few times throughout the day and, thus, a jacket needs to adapt in order for the user to stay comfortable.
What Gore learned from Comfort Science to benefit consumers: Along with increasing durability, one of the goals with new GORE-TEX PRO was also to increase freedom of movement in a waterproof jacket.
The Scientific process used: Gore created manikins based on studies of real human subjects. To start, Gore took both male and female human subjects and watched their movements, mapping the areas on their bodies where they felt resistance when they did various activities. Gore was then able to quantify the resistance the wearers felt when they were wearing different layers during movement. Gore then transferred these real-life human results to moving manikins equipped with pressure sensors, which are able to simulate different human movements and quantify the amount of pressure the clothing applies against these movements. Pressure sensors were used to understand when, and by how much, a garment would restrict movement. Once the pressure sensors were accurately displayed on the manikins, the designers experimented with stretch and non-stretch paneling, the size and the location of the paneling placed on the jacket, in order to understand the best way to reduce the restriction of movement and maximize the ergonomic comfort. Once complete, the jackets were then tested again on human subjects, re-measuring any resistance of the fabric when in motion. By studying the type, size and location of the stretch paneling, Gore was able to develop a completely new approach to stretch in a waterproof fabric.
What Gore achieved: The results of manikin tests show significantly better freedom of movement for the new PRO elastic jacket compared to a non-elastic counterpart. The differences are even more pronounced when more layers are being worn underneath the jacket. This means the new GORE-TEX PRO elastic technology offers optimal ergonomic comfort when it matters most.
The consumer benefit for the end user: Unlike other approaches to stretch in a waterproof garment, which compromise the waterproof rating, the stretch technology in GORE-TEX PRO offers 20 percent more stretch, and thus results in a more form-fitting jacket that allows for full range of movement with no compromise in waterproof ratings or durability.
GORE-TEX INFINIUM™ WINDSTOPPER®: Balancing weather protection and comfort
The challenge: A conundrum for consumers engaging in athletic activities, such as hiking, running and biking, is balancing weather protection when moving at faster rates (for instance, in cycling, when going downhill with high wind speeds) with situations when someone needs to vent excess heat through breathability (when going uphill or times when the wind isn’t as aggressive). When a person is outside and the wind blows, the temperature that the body feels is lower than the actual air temperature. Regardless of what activity a person is doing, whether in the mountains or in the city, cold wind will cool the body, in turn leaving the consumer feeling uncomfortable.
What Gore learned from Comfort Science to benefit consumers: The placement of GORE-TEX INFINIUMTM WINDSTOPPER® in combination with other fabrics that offer air permeability within a running shirt or cycling jersey can offer excellent thermoregulation characteristics. A windproof layer stops the body from cooling and helps prevent reduced muscle activity (which is typical when the body cools down). Placing the WINDSTOPPER® technology on the front of the body, on the shoulders and over the arms, and using non-Gore textiles with open structures for optimized moisture management under the arms and portions of the back, helps create a perfect balance to protect consumers from weather and wind, yet also be able to adjust to rapid temperature changes.
The Scientific process used: Specifically for cycling, Gore used a manikin that produces sweat in a similar fashion to a real person to create a test process to help understand what a cyclist perceives as comfortable in changing weather conditions. The process revealed that for cyclists, the location and amount of GORE-TEX INFINIUMTM WINDSTOPPER® laminate was key to protecting against wind chill and creating a versatile garment.
The consumer benefit for the end user: Used in exactly the locations where needed, WINDSTOPPER® technology prevents the need to carry multiple layers to deal with changing weather. Due to the ability to both stop wind and allow breathability and moisture management, strategically placed WINDSTOPPER® technology helps keep riders more comfortable across changing conditions.
Gore revolutionized the outerwear industry with waterproof, breathable GORE-TEX Fabric more than 40 years ago and remains a leading innovator of performance apparel. Gore fabrics products provide comfort and protection in challenging environments and in everyday life, enabling wearers to safely and confidently achieve and experience more. From hiking in downpours to defense operations and fighting fires, Gore’s deep understanding of consumer and industry needs drives development of products with meaningful performance advantages. gore-tex.com and gore-workwear.com
About Gore
W. L. Gore & Associates is a global materials science company dedicated to transforming industries and improving lives. Since 1958, Gore has solved complex technical challenges in demanding environments — from outer space to the world’s highest peaks to the inner workings of the human body. With more than 10,500 Associates and a strong, team-oriented culture, Gore generates annual revenues of $3.7 billion. gore.com