Smart Coating for U.S. Army isn’t quite what it sounds like — wearable computing for soldiers ‚àö¬± instead, it’s wearable computing for tanks and helis. And it means they can self-repair in the field, and change color (camouflage) too.

Via John Petersen’s FuturEdition

A team of researchers at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) recently signed an $838,000 contract with the U.S. Army to develop a smart coating that would enable military vehicles, if corroded or scratched, to detect and heal themselves. The vehicles could also change color on the battlefield, creating instant camouflage and rendering tanks, helicopters and military trucks virtually invisible. The research team expects an additional $1.5 million to fund the smart-coating project for the following year.

The coatings will be embedded with, and driven by, nano-technology known as nano-machines. The microscopic electromechanical machines will send signals to Army personnel, alerting them if the coating is impaired; thus the name, smart coating.