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Prolonged exposure to solar radiation can cause considerable heat stress. The application of reflective materials in garments or sunscreens is generally considered as an appropriate protective strategy. In this study, we aimed to compare a range of reflective and control fabrics on their ability to reduce the thermal impact of solar radiation. We evaluated 16 reflective and 5 control fabrics, varying in applicability for garments and/or sunscreens. Transmission of ultraviolet, visible light and infrared radiation was studied using artificial solar light. Thermal impact reduction was first studied using artificial infrared light and secondly using natural sunlight, measuring temperature right at the back and 10 cm behind the fabric after a 10-minute exposure. Most samples showed comparably low radiation transmission (

In recent years, knitted strain sensors have been developed that aim to achieve reliable sensing and high wearability, but they are associated with difficulties due to high hysteresis and low gauge factor (GF) values. This study investigated the electromechanical performance of the weft-knitted strain sensors with a systematic approach to achieve reliable knitted sensors. For two elastic yarn types, six conductive yarns with different resistivities, the knitting density as well as the number of conductive courses were considered as variables in the study. We focused on the 1 × 1 rib structure and in the sensing areas co-knit the conductive and elastic yarns and observed that positioning the conductive yarns at the inside was crucial for obtaining sensors with low hysteresis values. We show that using this technique and varying the knitting density, linear sensors with a working range up to 40% with low hysteresis can be obtained. In addition, using this technique and varying the knitting density, linear sensors with a working range up to 40% strain, hysteresis values as low as 0.03, and GFs varying between 0 and 1.19 can be achieved.