By Shayan Ali Nassabi, Erfan Alireza, Sam Majidi and Arjun Kapur.
“It’s impossible” - No it isn’t. If you take into consideration the recent discoveries in modern science, you can surely agree that nothing is impossible. At least theoretically. Invisibility has been a popular topic of research for scientists for quite a while now, with early signs dating back to the Victorian era. The idea of being hidden or unseen is extremely intriguing for mankind as seen in various sci-fi movies and fantasy stories. A notable example is “The invisible man” by HG Wells. But how can it be implemented in reality? Let’s find out.
Camouflage - the art of being hidden in clear sight. Nature has shown its ability of being invisible in it’s own way: through camouflage. Either by releasing pigments to blend into the environment or by changing their cells to reflect different colours, different organisms have influenced humanity’s approach towards invisibility; and it has certainly influenced our team’s approach towards it.
Our team took the idea of camouflage and implemented it in the form of a suit. At first glance it might seem simple and dull, but the technology that makes it work is something to admire.
How it works:
The outside of the suit is almost entirely composed of flexible OLED panels that are insync with over 15 cameras that are integrated into the suit in various locations. The way the cameras and the display panels work together is the key to how the suit achieves invisibility.
For the suit to appear “invisible” or “hidden”, the parts of it that someone can see should blend in with everything that’s behind the suit.
For example, if you look at the suit from the front, it needs to look like the environment behind it for it to be camouflaged. That is the core functionality of the suit. The cameras capture images at various angles across the suit and display what is captured on the OLED panels that are on the opposite side of the suit.
BEFORE
AFTER
The images above showcase how the suit would work in real life. The cameras that are at the back of the suit capture the scene, and then simultaneously display it on the OLED panels in front of the suit, so that the front of the suit looks like everything behind it. This will make the suit appear “invisible”.
The tech that makes it happen:
Display tech:
Using OLED panels is essential for the suit to work efficiently.
Flexibility, energy efficiency, colour accuracy are all some of the factors that make OLED the best choice.
Using OLED panels with high refresh rates is also very important to achieve the best possible effect of invisibility.
Cameras:
A low light camera requires visible light to capture the image for proper operation. The low-light camera can "pull in" and magnify the ambient light; enough to capture an image. This makes it able to capture images in true darkness as evident in the picture. Also needed if the user wearing the suit is leaning against a wall or sitting.
Processor:
The processor on the suit is very similar to the display processor used in computer graphics. Display Processor is the interpreter or hardware that translates the code for the display processor to the image. The Display Processor translates the digital CPU(Central Processing Unit) data to analog values making it possible for a sharp and detailed image to be formed easily. Using a set algorithm that works with the processor we can capture the images seen by each camera and form the best image necessary for achieving invisibility.
Graphene:
Graphene is a one atom thick compound consisting of a hexagonal structure of carbon atoms. This unique structure allows it to be one of the best electrical conductors available. This along with its immense tensile strength of 130 GPA
(300x stronger than steel)
, weight of 0.0077 grams per m^2 and the fact that its a naturally transparent makes it the perfect material to use in this suit and also near future tech. Two layers of graphene positioned in between a fabric could make for a diamond hard “kevlar-like” armor with enough flexibility to provide the essential movement that is needed from users of this suit. These features could work hand in hand with the flexible OLED screens and the precisely placed High-def Low light Cameras to achieve the desired effect of camouflage.
As graphene has the ability to conduct electricity without resistance makes it a superconductor that can work at room temperatures.
This gives opportunity for implementing GPS and communication devices into the suit itself.
Graphene can also be used as a means of batteries with ultra-fast charging capabilities to power the entire suit with all its components. Not to mention that it has the possibility to work with bionic devices such as chips that connect directly to your neurons and can execute commands given from them.
Suit material:
Comfort is an important aspect of any product, be it the size and mobility of your phone or that amazing feeling you get when you wear a quality dress; being comfortable with your products is a must. Using a combination of a material that is 65% polyester, 35% cotton we can achieve a tear resistant but still comfortable layer that can make it pleasing while wearing for extended periods of time. This piece will have two layers of graphene on top to make use of all its features and abilities.
Cooling system:
You might be thinking that, ‘well, all these components will produce a lot of heat won't they?’. Yes they do, but we have a solution! By making use of a Liquid cooling and ventilation garment (LCG) we can eliminate this problem. An LCG is a close fitting garment that has crush-resistant ventilation ducts which remove body heat. It does this by removing moisture and heat from the body’s extremities which would otherwise make the user feel wet and uncomfortable. This material is integrated into the polyester and cotton layer for maximum efficiency.
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Nothing is impossible. Science has shown us that with appropriate and in depth research, experimentation and discovery, nothing is impossible. Our invisibility suit concept is still only an idea. It is a design prototype. Only proper testing and experimentation can prove whether it can be used to achieve invisibility. Let's hope that one day it can be a reality.
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NOTE: The thumbnail image is not owned by us. It is only used for display purposes. All rights are to its owner.
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