New 3D thermal invisibility cloak makes objects disappear from infrared cameras
36 points by stevenalowe 3 days ago | 20 comments
whatsakandr 2 hours ago
This headline is wrong. This has nothing to do with thermal cameras. It's "cloaking" by making it appear to have the same bulk thermal properties as it's surroundings.
replyschiffern 6 minutes ago
Yes. Unfortunately many people are reading this thinking it's a FLIR invisibility cloak.
replyFYI Ukraine already has FLIR invisibility cloaks (fancy camo space blankets): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfdF3iIwoX4
This is thermal cloak, explained here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CM2RJi4mRZ0
Notably it only works after the heat flow settles back down to equilibrium. If you're moving, it doesn't work.
jagged-chisel 2 hours ago
Does this work for things that emit heat?
replySV_BubbleTime 3 hours ago
[flagged]
replyjdlshore 3 hours ago
Is dismissing people’s work so rudely how you make yourself feel superior?
replythin_carapace 3 hours ago
that guy taught me something new about glass in a snarky fashion , while you delivered pure snark. no comment to add, merely an observation
replytarpitt 3 hours ago
you can't make a drone entirely out of glass
replyonion2k 3 hours ago
Can you fly a drone that's covered with a cloak?
replymrandish 2 hours ago
Probably not very well if the drone is the typical (quad)copter type since the shield will likely obstruct the airflow from the propellers reducing lift. The added weight of the shield is also likely to be a problem in small drones as most are already weight constrained. Although in small electric copters like those used in Ukraine, I'm not sure how often thermal imaging is used as a primary detection vector (due to size, distance and daytime thermal delta from below).
replyThermal is definitely a primary vector in detecting larger drones like the Reaper due to large combustion or jet engines, but in that case the challenge isn't cloaking the drone, it's cloaking the heat of the vented exhaust that's likely leaving a thermal 'contrail' across the sky.
The future is turning out to be fascinating as concerning.