A team of researchers from the U.S. and China created a robotic prototype that can change its color to blend with its surroundings. The breakthrough technology mimics the capability of the chameleon to switch colors in order to match its environs as it moves around, rendering it "invisible" to observers.
The mechanical chameleon projects the color of its surrounding by activating its electric-powered "broad reflection bands," the Daily Mail reported. The machine is able to do this by creating its own color through light sensors that can recognize its background and triggers the robot's A.I. to produce a similar reaction.
One particular challenge for the researchers was the transition of reproduced colors so that it matches its background as the robot moves around. The problem was addressed with the use of bimetallic nanodot arrays and electrochemical bias that create "plasmonic modulation," which tunes color and transform structure. Researchers covered the robot with scales or patches that correspond to the plasmonic cells.
"An ideal mechanical chameleon will be equipped with miniature colour sensors to sense the colour patterns of the environment," the researchers said in a paper published in ACS Nano. "The acquired information from the camera will be automatically analysed and delivered to individual colour patches, changing the chameleon's body appearance accordingly."
The mechanical chameleon prototype is still being developed. The video below, which demonstrates how the robot works, shows the machine reproducing three basic colors. Researchers, however, expect that its future iterations will be capable of reproducing complex color combinations to achieve the ultimate artificial camouflage technology, the researches told Wired.
