The problem
Integrating pressurised fluidic circuits into textiles would enable muscle support, thermoregulation and haptic feedback in a comfortably wearable form. But fiber fluidic components existed only for passive transport — tubes and connectors. Pressure generation remained confined to external, rigid and bulky pumps.
The innovation
The fiber pump turns the pump itself into a thread: a soft thermoplastic-polyurethane tube with two continuous helical electrodes embedded in the wall. When voltage is applied, the charge-injection EHD mechanism generates pressure and flow along the full length of the fiber. The longer it is, the more pressure it produces: the pump is bought "by the metre" and cut to length.
The demonstrations
The work demonstrates textiles that actively heat and cool the wearer, textile artificial muscles with an integrated pump for compression and muscle assistance, and wearable haptic circuits. The fiber keeps working even when stretched and bent, opening the way to genuinely portable textile exosuits.