Design firm makes smart seats for a more comfy flight

The seats are made from a smart textile that reacts to passengers' size, weight and movement

Spotted: UK design studio Layer has designed smart airplane seats that adjust to make passengers more comfortable. An electric current passes through the thread in the textile fabric. It senses a person’s weight, size and movements, and changes the firmness of different parts of the seat to improve comfort.

Its sensors also collect data. That data is sent to an app, which allows passengers to monitor and control things like temperature and the softness of the seat. The app also analyses the data throughout the flight so it can automatically adjust the seat to make passengers more comfortable.

According to the company, the seat’s design and tray storage give passengers more room.

The seats are currently a prototype and are part of an ongoing project between Layer and Airbus.