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By John Glenday, Reporter

May 23, 2016 | 1 min read

Fashion brand Levi’s has introduced a touch sensitive jacket designed to be worn by gadget lovers in situations where they find themselves unable to access their mobile.

Project Jacquard has been developed by Google’s ATAP division which has partnered with Levi’s to manufacture the clothing first, where wearers can touch the sleeve of their jacket to answer or block a call with compatibility also baked in for the likes of Spotify, Google Maps, Strava, and Google.

Project head Ivan Poupyrev insisted that they were not in the business of "making smart pants" but was instead focusing on a "commuter trucker jacket". This design will see a small "thin and flexible" touch sensitive area sewn into the sleeve with rigid microchips cleverly integrated within a button loop – which must be removed prior to a spin in the washing machine.

Crucially the jacket is designed to be robust, allowing it to be thrown around, soaked and bashed without fear of frying delicate electronics.

The innovative garment is expected to enter beta testing this autumn ahead of a consumer release by spring 2017.

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