Textile IR: A Bidirectional Intermediate Representation for Physics-Aware Fashion CAD

Abstract: We introduce Textile IR, a bidirectional intermediate representation that connects manufacturing-valid CAD, physics-based simulation, and lifecycle assessment for fashion design. Unlike existing siloed tools where pattern software guarantees sewable outputs but understands nothing about drape, and physics simulation predicts behaviour but cannot automatically fix patterns, Textile IR provides the semantic glue for integration through a seven-layer Verification Ladder -- from cheap syntactic checks (pattern closure, seam compatibility) to expensive physics validation (drape simulation, stress analysis). The architecture enables bidirectional feedback: simulation failures suggest pattern modifications; material substitutions update sustainability estimates in real time; uncertainty propagates across the pipeline with explicit confidence bounds. We formalise fashion engineering as constraint satisfaction over three domains and demonstrate how Textile IR's scene-graph representation enables AI systems to manipulate garments as structured programs rather than pixel arrays. The framework addresses the compound uncertainty problem: when measurement errors in material testing, simulation approximations, and LCA database gaps combine, sustainability claims become unreliable without explicit uncertainty tracking. We propose six research priorities and discuss deployment considerations for fashion SMEs where integrated workflows reduce specialised engineering requirements. Key contribution: a formal representation that makes engineering constraints perceptible, manipulable, and immediately consequential -- enabling designers to navigate sustainability, manufacturability, and aesthetic tradeoffs simultaneously rather than discovering conflicts after costly physical prototyping.