Coded visibility: DARPA wants to create completely new aerosol curtains
How Coded Visibility works: the fighter on the left can observe through the smoke, while his opponent does not see anything
The Pentagon is going to create and adopt a new generation of smoke / aerosol screens with unusual features. They will still block the enemy's view, but for their troops the curtain will be almost transparent. This concept is called “coded visibility” and is currently being developed by DARPA with the involvement of a number of scientific and commercial organizations.
Visibility issues
The US Army has at its disposal a range of smoke and aerosol compositions, as well as a variety of means of setting curtains, from grenades to vehicles with special equipment. All these means successfully allow you to hide objects from the enemy, incl. from different means of observation. However, they have several characteristic disadvantages.
The main problem with any smoke screen is that it hides objects not only from the enemy - it also makes it difficult for friendly troops to observe. In addition, the veil is unmanageable and cannot be controlled once it has been set. Finally, not all existing pyrotechnic compositions are safe for health and do not interfere with the work of fighters due to the need to use protective equipment.
Obviously, promising and hypothetical compositions without such shortcomings are of great interest to the Pentagon. With their help, it would be possible to reduce risks, as well as gain new opportunities and advantages over the enemy. And now the real work begins in this area.
"Coded Visibility"
On October 12 last year, DARPA announced the launch of a research project called Coded Visibility. Its task is to conduct research and search for new technologies in the field of aerosol curtains. The ultimate goal of the program is to create fundamentally new means of disguise with unusual properties.
US Army M58 curtain laying machine
In the coming days after the announcement of the program, DARPA planned to accept applications from potential participants. A meeting was scheduled for October 21, during which the Agency provided them with the necessary information for further research and other work.
The main goal of Coded Visibility was to create curtains that can block the enemy's view, but will not interfere with their troops. This approach is labeled "asymmetric". At the same time, research will be conducted in two directions, designated as passive and active asymmetry. Passive asymmetry provides for the creation of compositions and accompanying means that will allow their troops to see through the veils. Hypothetical curtains of the active type, in turn, will be controllable and will be able to change their properties on command. It is proposed to find trains with such capabilities and develop ways to control them.
On August 16, 2022, the DARPA agency determined the list of participants in the Coded Visibility program and issued them contracts for work. "Passive asymmetry" will be research centers Raytheon Technologies and Xerox PARC in collaboration with Rice University.
Active technologies will be studied by three groups of organizations at once. The first includes Northeastern University, New York and Pennsylvania Universities, and Polaris Sensor Technologies. The second group consisted of Signature Research and Duke University. Georgia Institute of Technology will compete with them.
Tasks and solutions
DARPA revealed the main objectives of the new program. It is required to find the optimal compositions for setting up curtains of two types, "passive" and "active". In addition, there are requirements for the safety of these compositions for the organs of vision and breathing of personnel. Fighters must work in a curtain without gas masks.
It is reported that DARPA is already presenting possible ways to solve the tasks. In both directions, passive and active asymmetry, it is planned to test various modern materials and technologies. Various scattering media and substances will be investigated, incl. biochemical compounds and metamaterials. It is planned to use developments in the field of plasmonics and other advanced areas.
Stryker armored personnel carrier with smoke grenade launchers on the combat module
At the same time, the agency has not yet announced which solutions and technologies will be used in the new program. It also does not specify how such research will be distributed among participating organizations, and how long it will take them to complete the first stages of work.
The result of the research stage will be the first samples of compounds for laboratory and field tests. They will pass preliminary tests, based on the results of which DARPA and the Pentagon will decide on further activities. If the demonstration of technologies is successful, the projects will be developed, and in the distant future the army will be able to get fundamentally new means of disguise.
Encoding options
DARPA and its contractors have not yet disclosed the details of the new project. However, it is possible to imagine possible ways to solve the tasks, to determine the optimal principles of operation of camouflage systems, and also to understand their advantages. So, it is already clear that the Coded Visibility program will not do without creating only new aerosols. It is also required to develop various additional tools with the help of which new features will be implemented.
It can be expected that the new aerosols will be used in conjunction with existing staging aids. Substances in liquid or powder form can be used in smoke grenade launchers or on production machines. Fundamentally new funds should not be expected, and there is simply no need for them.
The most convenient way to obtain "passive asymmetry" is to use a curtain that covers the visible and infrared ranges, with the exception of their individual parts. Their troops will be able to continue to observe through such an aerosol using optics tuned to "free" frequencies. In theory, the creation of such a system is quite possible, although it requires some effort. In addition, the process of switching to such curtains and optical means on an army-wide scale will not be easy.
Systems of "active asymmetry" require opaque particles capable of changing their optical properties under external influence. Electromagnetic radiation can be used to control such an aerosol. Once in the radio beam, the curtain particles must transmit light or infrared radiation, or, conversely, become opaque - in the entire spectrum or only in a separate part of it. In the absence of exposure, the substance must return to its original state.
US Army exercises using smoke
To see through such a curtain, equipment and soldiers will need control emitters with the necessary characteristics, as well as appropriate optics. Equipping the army with such complexes will not be an easy task. At the same time, infantry requires compact and lightweight equipment, which has yet to be created.
The advantages of the two types of perspective curtain are clear. The passive type will allow you to continue observation and fire even if you have your own curtain. At the same time, the transition to such funds will be relatively simple. However, the resulting separation from the enemy will not be long. In one way or another, he will recognize the "free" ranges of a particular aerosol - and he will also be able to see through the veils.
The active curtain will be "transparent" only at the necessary moments and only in the required sector. The rest of the time it will hide the actions of the troops. Depending on the properties of the aerosol, it will be possible to change the configuration of an already standing curtain, taking into account changes in the situation. Curious opportunities will be provided by an aerosol capable of changing its transparency instantly or within seconds.
However, active curtains will be more complicated and more expensive, both in terms of development and in terms of implementation in the troops. In addition, they may be characterized by the same problems as the passive ones. At the same time, it cannot be ruled out that the enemy himself will learn to control the curtain and use it against the masters.
Race of disguises
Despite the apparent simplicity of this direction, the development of smoke / aerosol camouflage does not stop. In the USA, other foreign countries and in our country, new pyrotechnic compositions with various advantages are constantly being developed. Basically, we are talking about improving protection against various means of surveillance, working in different ranges, etc.
This time around, the US came up with a bolder idea. The Pentagon believes that next-generation curtains should only interfere with the enemy and have other properties. A related research program has been launched and its future results are of particular interest. If DARPA and contractors can find substances and compounds with the desired capabilities, then the US Army will have known advantages. However, the success of the Coded Visibility program will be an incentive for other states, and they will launch their own projects - and the situation on the hypothetical battlefield will change again.
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