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BAE Systems has tested an ‘invisibility cloak’ that will allow a vehicle to blend into its surroundings. It could mean that tanks soon become invisible at night by using the system which masks their infra-red signature. The device will be displayed in its infra-red mode on a BAE Systems CV90 armoured vehicle at the UK Defence and Security Equipment International exhibition next week.
The technology is known as "Adaptiv" and is based on sheets of hexagonal 'pixels' that can change temperature very rapidly. On-board cameras pick up the background scenery and display that infra-red image on the vehicle, allowing even a moving tank to match its surroundings. Alternatively, it can mimic another vehicle such as a car or truck or display identification tags, reducing the risk of 'friendly fire' incidents.
Researchers are currently looking at ways to make it work with other wavelengths of light to confer true invisibility. While their work focuses mainly on the infra-red spectrum, as this is most important to the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) which funds part of the work, BAE Systems engineers have combined the pixels with other technologies that can provide camouflage in other parts of the electro-magnetic spectrum at the same time. Such a move would provide all-round stealth and set to be developed further over the next few years.
Trials by BAE Systems in mid-July showed that one side of a CV90 could be made effectively invisible or appear to be other objects, including a 4x4 vehicle, when viewed in the infra-red spectrum. Field trials of the thermal cloaking system showed that it made a tank resemble background scenery best from a distance of 300-400m.
Project manager, Peder Sjölund explains: "Earlier attempts at similar cloaking devices have hit problems because of cost, excessive power requirements or because they were insufficiently robust. Our panels can be made so strong that they provide useful armour protection and consume relatively low levels of electricity, especially when the vehicle is at rest in 'stealth recce' mode and generator output is low."
He adds: "We can resize the pixels to achieve stealth for different ranges. A warship or building, for instance, might not need close-up stealth, so could be fitted with larger panels."
BAE estimates that the technology could be ready to put into production in two years.
