Camouflage External Coating

Abstract

Camouflage coating systems, apparatuses, and methods described herein may include a coating deposited and bonded to a region of an external surface of an object to be camouflaged. The coating may include a plurality of stacked material arrangements deposited and bonded sequentially onto the region of the external surface and arranged to define a laterally distributed plurality of independent camouflage profiles. The coating may be configured to adjust coating emissivity at visual and IR wavelengths and to block or adjust infrared (IR) emitted by the object, thereby concealing the region of the external surface of the object from detection by a detection method in the visual, infrared, and electromagnetic regimes.

Claims

1. A coating deposited and bonded to a region of an external surface of an object to be camouflaged, the coating comprising a plurality of stacked material arrangements deposited and bonded sequentially onto the region of the external surface and arranged to define a laterally distributed plurality of independent camouflage profiles, wherein the coating is configured to adjust coating emissivity at visual and IR wavelengths and to block or adjust infrared (IR) emitted by the object, thereby concealing the region of the external surface of the object from detection by a detection method in visual, infrared, and electromagnetic regimes.

2. The coating according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of stacked material arrangements comprises laterally distributed features, each of the plurality of stacked material arrangements defining a characteristic camouflage profile.

3. The coating according to claim 1, wherein at least some of the plurality of stacked material arrangements are provided as a plurality of segments assembled to provide the coating, each segment having a same or different camouflage profile.

4. The coating according to claim 1, comprising an IR emissivity layer.

5. The coating according to claim 1, comprising an IR blocking layer.

6. The coating according to claim 1, comprising an insulating layer selected to prevent heat generated by the object from flowing towards an external surface of the coating.

7. A multispectral coating comprising an assembly of a plurality of coating segments, each coating segment comprising a stacked arrangement of a plurality of material components defining a characteristic camouflage profile, wherein the plurality of coating segments are laterally arranged on a surface of an object to provide a laterally distributed plurality of independent camouflage profiles, wherein the multispectral coating is configured to adjust coating emissivity at visual and IR wavelengths and to block or adjust IR emitted by the object, thereby concealing the surface of the object from detection by a detection method in visual, infrared, and electromagnetic regimes.

8. The multispectral coating according to claim 7, wherein each of the plurality of coating segments comprises an IR emissivity layer.

9. The multispectral coating according to claim 7, wherein each of the plurality of coating segments comprises an IR blocking layer.

10. The multispectral coating according to claim 7, wherein each of the plurality of coating segments comprises an insulating layer selected to prevent heat generated by the object from flowing towards an external surface of the multispectral coating.

11. The multispectral coating according to claim 7, wherein the object is a stationary object or a mobile object.

12. The multispectral coating according to claim 11, wherein the object is one of a platform, a land vehicle, an aerial vehicle, a drone, a maritime vehicle, and a vessel.

13. The multispectral coating according to claim 7, wherein the plurality of coating segments is formed directly onto the surface of the object.

14. The multispectral coating according to claim 7, wherein each coating segment is configured to attach to the surface of the object.

15. The multispectral coating according to claim 14, wherein each coating segment is configured to attach to the surface of the object by touch fasteners, magnets, or an adhesive.

16. The multispectral coating according to claim 7, wherein the characteristic camouflage profile is adjusted locally to fit discrete or preselected surface regions of the object.

17. The multispectral coating according to claim 7, wherein the stacked arrangement comprises a water-repellent layer, an anti-corrosion layer, a visual/IR emissivity layer, IR blocking layer, a hardening layer, an insulating layer, and an interface layer.

18. The multispectral coating according to claim 7, wherein the plurality of coating segments is formed on a substrate configured to attach to a surface region on the object.

19. The multispectral coating according to claim 18, wherein the substrate is a base sheet made of a metallic material, a polymeric material, a ceramic material, or a rigid fabric.

20. The multispectral coating according to claim 19, wherein the base sheet is an aluminum sheet or a polymeric sheet.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0062] In order to better understand the subject matter that is disclosed herein and to exemplify how it may be carried out in practice, embodiments will now be described, by way of non-limiting examples only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0063] FIG. 1 depicts layered material components according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0064] FIG. 2 depicts a side view of a layered material components in a segment according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0065] FIG. 3 is an illustration of a vehicle having three distinct regions having different continuous coating of a camouflage according to the present disclosure.

[0066] FIG. 4 depicts three segments according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0067] FIG. 5 is an illustration of a vehicle having three different distinct regions implementation both the skin and segmented configurations according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0068] Specific non-limiting configurations of camouflage systems of the present disclosure are depicted in FIGS. 1-5.

[0069] FIG. 1 provides a schematic representation of a layered assembly of material components according to some embodiments of the invention. A segment according to some embodiments disclosed herein is shown in FIG. 2.

[0070] As depicted in FIG. 1 and in FIG. 2, each layer represents a material layer according to some configurations of the present disclosure. In the configurations depicted herein, the camouflage coating is formed on a substrate 100 which may be an object's external surface or a substrate of a segment, as defined herein. Each of the material components may be sequentially formed on the surface or the substrate by a suitable means of deposition or application. In an exemplary sequence, an interface layer 101 is formed on the surface or substrate, followed by application or deposition of an insulation layer 102, a hardening layer 103, an infrared (IR) blocking layer 104, a visual and/or IR emissivity layer 105, an anticorrosion layer 106, and a water repelling layer 107. In other exemplary sequences, the camouflage coating formed on the surface or substrate may include any number of variations or alterations of interface layer 101, insulation layer 102, hardening layer 103, IR blocking layer 104, visual and/or IR emissivity layer 105, anticorrosion layer 106, and water repelling layer 107. For example, various layers may be repeated or omitted without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0071] The camouflage coating may be applied on any region of the object, e.g., on any portion of the substrate 100. By selecting the composition of the material components to be applied and the sequence of layers, a plurality of camouflage profiles may be obtained such that each profile corresponds to predetermined camouflage demands based on, e.g., the location of the region to be coated on the external surface of the object. In the illustration provided in FIG. 3, a camouflaged vehicle 200 is shown, which external surface 201 is provided with three continuous yet distinct surface regions 210, 220 and 230 that are covered each with a different set of material components, and/or in a different layering sequence, thereby each exhibiting a different camouflage profile. In this particular example, different profiles are employed in view of the position and the specific characteristics of each surface region, e.g., roof versus side panels and engine cover.

[0072] A camouflage coating may also be provided by assembling a plurality of segments, as depicted in FIG. 4. In the exemplified illustration, three segments are shown of different shapes and sizes that are provided with different material layers; thus, each segment exhibits a different camouflage profile. Each of layers 301 through 309 represents a different selection of material layers including an insulation layer, a hardening layer, an IR blocking layer, a visual and/or IR emissivity layer, an anticorrosion layer, and a water repelling layer. As depicted, segment A may be formed on a substrate 301 and may include six layered materials (302, 3030, 304, 305, 306 and 307) selected from an insulation layer, a hardening layer, an IR blocking layer, a visual and/or IR emissivity layer, an anticorrosion layer, and a water repelling layer. Segment B may be formed on a substrate 301 and may include seven layered materials (303, 304, 305, 306, 307, 308 and 309) selected from an insulation layer, a hardening layer, an IR blocking layer, a visual and/or IR emissivity layer, an anticorrosion layer, and a water repelling layer. Similarly, segment C formed on be formed on a material layer 303, e.g., a fabric, and include further six additional material layers (304, 305, 306, 307, 308 and 309) selected from an insulation layer, a hardening layer, an IR blocking layer, a visual and/or IR emissivity layer, an anticorrosion layer, and a water repelling layer. Still further, various segments may be provided with less than six layered materials or more than seven layered materials without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0073] In the illustration provided in FIG. 5, a camouflaged vehicle 400 is shown provided with three continuous yet distinct surface regions 401, 402 and 403 that are each covered with a different set of material components, and/or in a different layering sequence, thereby each exhibiting a different camouflage profile. In this particular example, surface region 401 is covered with a plurality of differently shaped and sized segments, surface region 402 is covered with a plurality of square-shaped and identically sized segments, and region 403 is provided as a skin coat according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0074] It will be appreciated that the embodiments described above are cited by way of example, and that the present disclosure is not limited to what has been particularly shown and described hereinabove. Rather, the scope of the present disclosure includes both combinations and subcombinations of the various features described hereinabove, as well as variations and modifications thereof which would occur to persons skilled in the art upon reading the foregoing description and which are not disclosed in the prior art.