Researchers developed knitted textiles that can function as switches and count steps. A piece of knitted fabric can now do more than stretch and fold. Researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) developed machine-knitted fabrics that could serve as programmable switches, sensors, and other functional devices. Examples of multistable knitted fabrics. Credit: Kausalya Mahadevan / Harvard SEASConductive yarn turns fabric into switchesThe researchers then knitted thin conductive yarns into the fabric, converting the snapping structures into flexible electrical switches.