US Patent 11576262 Fabric-mounted components

Fabric may include one or more conductive strands. An insertion tool may insert an electrical component into the fabric during formation of the fabric. The electrical component may include an electrical device mounted to a substrate and encapsulated by a protective structure. An interconnect structure such as a metal via or printed circuit layers may pass through an opening in the protective structure and may be used to couple a conductive strand to a contact pad on the substrate. The protective structure may be transparent or may include an opening so that light can be detected by or emitted from an optical device on the substrate. The protective structure may be formed using a molding tool that provides the protective structure with grooves or may be molded around a hollow conductive structure to create grooves. An electrical component mounted to the fabric may be embedded within printed circuit layers.