Arzu Vuruskan

Identification of female body shapes based on numerical evaluations

Purpose – Identification of human body shapes has been a key issue to develop sizing standards for ready‐to‐wear and to develop made‐to‐measure applications. Current methods to identify the body shapes are mostly based on subjective/visual determination approaches. The purpose of this paper is to look for numerical evaluation parameters for an objective method in order to classify the body shapes and to build up an automated process link.Design/methodology/approach – Female subjects were chosen for the experimental design. 3D body scanning technology was integrated in the process for measurement taking and body silhouette detection of the sample group. Based on this sample data set, body shape identification was realized by referees as visual analyses, and additionally, an objective method was tried out by using body dimensions as numerical evaluation parameters. Obtained results with the sample group were inserted in a database and a body shape calculation tool was developed.Findings – Statistical analys...

Intelligent fashion styling using genetic search and neural classification

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop an intelligent system for fashion style selection for non-standard female body shapes. Design/methodology/approach – With the goal of creating natural aesthetic relationship between the body shape and the shape of clothing, garments designed for the upper and lower body are combined to fit different female body shapes, which are classified as V, A, H and O-shapes. The proposed intelligent system combines genetic algorithm (GA) with a neural network classifier, which is trained using the particle swarm optimization (PSO). The former, called genetic search, is used to find the optimal design parameters corresponding to a best fit for the desired target, while the task of the latter, called neural classification, is to evaluate fitness (goodness) of each evolved new fashion style. Findings – The experimental results are fashion styling recommendations for the four female body shapes, drawn from 260 possible combinations, based on variations from 15 attributes...

A sizing improvement methodology based on adjustment of interior accommodation rates across measurement categories within a size chart

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify common issues among commercial body size charts, and to propose a sizing improvement methodology without changing the number of sizes in the range. One goal is to equalize the number of people accommodated by each size within the range, and to propose a way to evaluate the effectiveness of the improvement. Design/methodology/approach The proposed method consists of three phases: (Phase I) identify target population; (Phase II) analysis of existing size charts; and (Phase III) improvement of the initial size chart. Phase III is the key process, which includes repeated manipulation of intersize intervals of the three primary measurements (chest, waist and hip) for improved consistency of overall and interior accommodate rates among the three measurement categories. A program was developed in RStudio® to generate trials and side-by-side bar plots for visualization of the differences in accommodate rates. Findings The main issue in commercial body size charts observed is the inconsistency of the interior accommodation rates among measurement categories. Some other issues include: lack of important measurements, failure to provide ranges and gaps between measurement ranges of adjacent sizes. Originality/value This paper proposed a complete work flow to improve body size charts to fix the common issues. The method integrates historic size information and new anthropometric information extracted from a national-scale sizing database (e.g. SizeUSA). The study also brought association of the secondary body measurements with primary measurements without using linear regression. Hence, information from body size charts can be more efficiently used in acquiring other size information.

Modeling of half-scale human bodies in active body positions for apparel design and testing

Purpose The design and testing of clothing for activewear requires complex assessments of the suitability of the clothing when the body is in motion. The purpose of this paper is to investigate full body 3D scanning of active body poses in order to develop “watertight” digital models and half-scale dress forms to facilitate design, pattern making and fit analyses. Issues around creating a size set of scans in order to facilitate fit testing of activewear across a size range were also explored. Design/methodology/approach Researchers experimented to discover effective methods for 3D body capture in the cycling position and reconstruction of the body in a reliable way. In total, 25 cyclists were scanned and size representatives were selected from these participants. Methods of creating half-scale forms were developed that make optimum use of modern materials and technologies. Half-scale dress forms were created in two active positions in a range of sizes for fit testing and design. A set of half-scale and full-scale bike shorts in two styles were manufactured and fit tested on the half-scale forms compared to fit testing on the scan participants to test validity of this method of assessing fit. Findings Issues in capturing and reconstructing areas occluded in the scanning process, and reconstructing the interface with the bicycle seat were addressed. Active digital forms were developed across the size range, from which both digital avatars and physical mannequins were developed for pattern development and fit testing. The production and use of precisely half-scaled tools for garment testing was achieved and validated by comparing fit test results in active positions on the half-scale forms and on participants who were scanned to create these forms. Originality/value Design modifications for active positions to date are based on linear measurements alone, which do not define the 3D body adequately. Despite much research using body scanners, only limited data exist on the body in active poses, and the concept of creating half-scale forms by scanning fit models throughout the size range in active body positions is a novel concept. The progress made in resolving material and process experiments in creating the actual half-scale forms, and testing their suitability for fit testing provides a basis for further research aimed at developing similar dress forms for other activewear garments.

Application of evolutionary algorithms to garment design

In this study, we present the development of an intelligent system solution for fashion style selection for various female body shapes. The proposed intelligent system combines binary genetic algorithm (GA) or binary version of the particle swarm optimization (PSO) with PSO-trained artificial neural network. The former is used to search the solution space for the optimal design parameters corresponding to a best fit for the desired target, and the task of the latter is to evaluate fitness (goodness) of each evolved new fashion style. With the goal of creating natural aesthetic relationship between the shape of the body and the shape of the garment for fashion styling, combinations of upper body related and lower body related garment pieces together with detailed attribute categories were created as a knowledge base. The encouraging results of preliminary experiments demonstrate the feasibility of applying intelligent systems to fashion styling.

Fashion Styling Recommendation with Intelligent Systems: Test of an Online Platform

Integration of intelligent systems in fashion and design related field is a relatively new concept. The aim of this research was to evaluate the performance of an intelligent fashion styling recommendation system for non-standard female body shapes. As a recommender strategy, the intelligent fashion styling system employs a twostage genetic search, which recommends users fashion styles based on experts’ suggestions and user’s preferences through the system. The proposed intelligent system was tested through a web-based platform using both synthetic and real participants. In cases of synthetic participants results were promising. However, in real participant cases, results were unsatisfactory in average due to certain complications in the testing process and variety in characteristics of participants. Note that, even the average result was unsatisfactory, certain participants indicated their positive remarks for the recommendations provided by intelligent fashion styling platform to identify their expectations.

Reimagining Design of Golf Clothing: Addressing the Asymmetrical Pose

One factor that can impact performance and comfort of athletes is clothing design. For many sports, the athlete performs a set of extreme movements that can be impeded or made uncomfortable because of clothing that does not accommodate such movements. The objective of this research is to create body forms in active positions to assist in the development of golf clothing for the active body. A Human Solutions Vitus Smart XXL body scanner was used to scan five professional golfers at different stages of a golf swing. Half scale dress forms in the active position were then prepared using these scans. The half scale forms developed in the golf swing pose are an effective design development tool to create golf clothing optimized for fit on the active figure. Wear tests and visual fit evaluations of prototype garments developed on these forms were conducted, comparing their fit and performance to when in a squatting pose and through the golf swing with the active pants developed in this research. As professional young golfers, all five participants stated that the idea of active pants and enhancing comfort through motion is as an important challenge to address.

From 3D Scans to Haptic Models: Apparel Design with Half Scale Dress Forms

Any design process requires prototype development to test properties and perfect proportional or functional relationships before committing to production. Prototypes are also used to communicate concepts or solutions using limited materials and at an affordable cost. Architects have communicated their ideas using scaled models beginning as far back as medieval times. These models demonstrate their design ideas and help address functional issues in 3D. Scaled down dress forms used in fashion design are a more recent concept. One of the first uses of 3D body scanning for apparel in the early 2000s was to make dress forms based on body scans. In 2007, in a collaborative effort between Cornell University and Alvanon, a half scale form from body scan data was developed for educational use. This form is an exact reduction of a full scale form made from a body scan, and allows students to develop their designs with limited fabric, time commitment, and studio space. Students digitize the patterns they develop into a patternmaking CAD program and then scale them up to full scale. These forms have been used very effectively in product development and patternmaking classes at Cornell, and are now popular in schools around the world. Further uses of half scale forms are being investigated for apparel research, creative pattern making, and pattern development for different body types. Half scale forms can be made in-house from body scans easily and economically. By using 3D body scan technology and transferring 3D digital data to sliced foam models or 3D printed models, custom half scale forms are developed. These forms have the potential to benefit both academia and industry.

Analysis of 3D Body Scanning for Body Measurement Extraction Considering the Cultural Context

Besides developing new technologies, it is rather important to understand the consumer background in order to adapt new developments. Identifying consumer interest and willingness for 3D body scanning in apparel and fashion industry is crucial for the integration of scanning technology to a national size survey or customization activities. The aim of this research was to identify consumer interest and awareness or consumer reactions to body scanning considering the cultural context. Consumer opinions were first discussed by analyzing a sample group in Turkey. Two groups were created; first with the students and second with the academics. No age or gender limit was identified for this part of the survey. Consequently, another test group was created with male students for measurement extraction with body scanning, and a following questionnaire aimed to examine their reactions to the process after actually being body scanned. Last part of the survey was intended for female participants. Two groups of sample sets were created for measurement taking. Participants in the first group were chosen from a German university and were measured by scanning; whereas the second group consisted of participants from Turkish universities and were measured by traditional anthropometric tools. Questions and observations aimed to identify the awareness of body scanning as well as the comfort level during measurement taking process. The survey for examining consumer awareness and interest for scanning was realized as a part within a project, where the body scanning technology is analyzed with the aim of integrating this technology into a national size survey or apparel customization purposes. Turkey as a production country needs more customized solutions and technological investments for the maintenance and development of apparel and fashion industry. Besides this, a national size survey would carry importance considering the increasing population and consumer potential of the country. This study was important as a market survey; however, the limited number of participants was a limitation in the study. An extended survey would create more benefit to proceed further for possible applications such as a national size survey or made-to-measure developments.