Susan Ashdown
Professor
2007
FSAD

Web Bio Page

Current Activities

Current Research Activities
The focus of my work is the interaction between apparel design and technology, and the changes that are occurring in the way that apparel is designed, produced, and distributed using new and developing technologies. Specific areas of research include sizing and fit of apparel and the use of three dimensional body scanning in the apparel industry. I am interested in the creation of sizing systems for target markets based on anthropometric data, the anthropometric variation of populations, fit of clothing in active positions, as well as body changes that occur in older women. Other issues being investigated include the use of computer-aided design in developing patterns and grading systems and the development of computer systems for automating custom-fitted patterns. I am also interested in the use of 3D visual data for visualizing and judging the fit of apparel, virtual fit of apparel for the consumer, and the design, sizing, fit, and function of protective clothing.


Biography

Biographical Statement
My research focuses on the interaction between apparel design and technology, and the changes that are occurring in the way that apparel is designed, produced, and distributed using new and developing technologies.

More specifically, my research and teaching are in the field of technical apparel design, with a concentration on sizing and fit of both fashion and functional clothing, and the use of full body three-dimensional scanning in the apparel industry. Issues in patternmaking, grading, automated custom fit, judging apparel fit in research and industry settings, virtual fit, mass customization, interactions of materials and design, and functional apparel design are also topics that I address in my teaching and research.



Education


Courses, Websites, Pubs

Courses Taught


Related Websites

www.bodyscan.human.cornell.edu  
Body Scan Research: Description of the work of the Cornell Body Scan Research Group (with Suzanne Loker), 2002
 
www.sizingsystems.human.cornell.edu
Apparel Sizing: Reference list of publications on sizing and fit of apparel, 2001

http://figdev.cit.cornell.edu/2003/draping
Draping Instruction: Teaching support for apparel patternmaking/draping (with Richard MacPike), 2004

http://figdev.cit.cornell.edu/2003/patternmaker
Historic Garments: Three dimensional images from the Cornell Costume Collection for patternmaking/draping students, 2004



Publications
Ashdown, S.P., Editor. (2007) Sizing in Clothing: Developing Effective Sizing Systems for Ready-To-Wear Clothing, Woodhead Publishing Limited, Cambridge, England.

Loker, S. & Ashdown. S.P., (2007) ‘Virtual sensation: Dress online’, book chapter in Dress Sense: Emotional and Sensory Experiences of the Body and Clothes, Donald Clay Johnson and Helen Bradley Foster, Berg Publishers, NY.

Ashdown, S.P. & Loker, S., (2007) ‘Mass Customized Target Market Sizing: Extending the Sizing Paradigm for Improved Apparel Fit’, Proceedings of the 2007 World Congress on Mass Customization and Personalization, October 7-9, 2007, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Calhoun, E.L., Lyman-Clarke, L., Ashdown, S.P., (2007) ‘Virtual Fit of Apparel on the Internet: Current Technology and Future Needs’, Proceedings of the 2007 World Congress on Mass Customization and Personalization, October 7-9, 2007, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Schofield, N. A., Ashdown, S. P., Hethorn, J., LaBat, K., & Salluso, C. J., (2006) ‘Improving fit for women 55 and older through an exploration of two pant shapes’, Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, Focused Issue on Fit, 24(2), 147-160.

Lee, Y. A., Ashdown, S. P., Slocum, A. C. (2006) Measurement of surface area of 3-D body scans to assess the effectiveness of hats for sun protection.’ Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal 34(4), 366-385.

Griffey, J. V, & Ashdown, S. P., (2006) Development of an automated process for the creation of a basic skirt block pattern from 3D body scan data’, Clothing and Textiles Research Journal Focused Issue on Fit, 24(2), 112-120.

Ashdown, S. P. & O’Connell, E. K., (2006) Comparison of test protocols for judging the fit of mature women’s apparel’, Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, Focused Issue on Fit, 24(2), 137-146.

Ashdown, S. P. & Dunne, L., (2006) A study of automated custom fit: Readiness of the technology for the apparel industry’, Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, Focused Issue on Fit, 24(2), 121-136. 

Nam, J., Branson, D. H., Ashdown, S. P., Cao, H., Jin, B., & Peksoz, S., (2005). Fit analysis of liquid cooled vest prototypes using 3D body scanning technology’, Journal of Textile and Apparel, Technology and Management, 4(3), 

Loker, S., Ashdown, S. P., & Schoenfelder, K., Size-specific analysis of body scan data to improve apparel fit’, Journal of Textile and Apparel, Technology and Management, 4(3) 

Dunne, L. E., Ashdown, S. P., & Smyth, B., (2005). Expanding garment functionality through embedded electronic technology’, Journal of Textile and Apparel, Technology and Management, 4(3),

Ashdown, S. P., Loker, S., Schoenfelder, K. A., & Lyman-Clarke, L., (2004). Using 3D scans for fit analysis’, Journal of Textile and Apparel, Technology and Management, 4(1), 

Ashdown, Susan P. 1998. An Investigation of the Structure of Sizing Systems: A Comparison of Three Multidimensional Optimized Sizing Systems Generated from Anthropometric Data International Journal of Clothing Science and Technology. Vol. 10, #5, pp 324-341. 

Ashdown, Susan P. and Susan M. Watkins. 1996. Concurrent Engineering in the Design of Protective Clothing: Interfacing With Equipment Design. In Performance of Protective Clothing: Fifth Volume, American Society of Testing and Materials STP 1237.