Marty McFlight Jacket

In response to the recent trend of Nitinol™ inspired innovation, I'm compelled to assert that the jacket modeled by Marty McFly in "Back to the Future- part II" is technologically feasible at present.

As prior art has dictated, clothing must be constructed with a particular size and build in mind. No more.

Nitinol has unique characteristics, which allow it to change its molecular structure at a relatively low temperature, (approximately 140 degrees F) which can be induced either by external exposure to heat, or passing a current through it, causing it to seek memory with as much as a 40% linear contraction. Nitinol's flexibility is unparalleled by other materials in a "cold" state as well. The reaction time is generally in the range of one second for full contraction.

Given these unique characteristics of Nitinol, and its availability in strand diameters readily applicable to weaving, it is possible to create a weave of fabric (probably a knit, *spandex, etc.?* which will stretch and contract to accomodate a range of states while maintaining a "tidy" appearance) with, say, perhaps a 1% or so Nitinol content, which can "shrink to fit" (not to infringe on Levi Strauss and Co.'s trademark) the wearer. This would be facilitated by a battery and microprocessor control incorporated into the lining of the garment, passing a timed-increment output of current sufficient for your needs upon demand.

If your "slightly larger friend" needs to borrow a jacket, you simply stretch the jacket back to its fully-expanded state, and re-shrink it to fit your friend.

Nitinol's memory-seeking ability actually improves with repeated stretching and contracting, so the more times the size is changed, the better the garment's ability to adapt will be, without worry of "wearing it out". I think this could be especially handy if provided in emergency survival kits, etc., eliminating the need for user-specific size requirements.