This mini review highlights the use of smart materials for monitoring and adaptation in soldiers, suggesting potential for enhanced safety and efficiency.
Modern military activities employ advanced high‐tech weapons and equipment. In this context, uniforms that can respond to changes in the external environment, transmit battlefield information, and monitor the vital signs of soldiers are highly desirable to enhance individual combat capabilities while ensuring the safety of soldiers. With advances in materials science and information technology, smart materials have emerged as a promising platform for endowing conventional materials with capabilities such as sensing, actuation, and adaptation. This review summarizes the latest research progress in the application and challenges of smart materials in camouflage, respiration and heart rate monitoring, blood pressure and pulse monitoring, body fluid analysis, and human–machine interfaces. Beyond military activities, this review offers new perspectives on the application of smart materials in specialized scenarios, such as police duties, firefighting, rescue operations, and medical assistance. In addition, it provides a guideline for the future development of smart materials in terms of material selection, structural design and performance optimization.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Lu et al. (2026) studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: