Week 9 VantaBlack

Application of Vantablack Project on Vehicles

With the advent of microscopes and the discovery of nanoscale elements such as electrons and protons, nanotechnology has become a field of interest in the scientific community. Physicist Richard Feynman of Caltech described nanotechnology as the process to manipulate and control individual atoms and molecules.1 Though the field of nanotechnology is still in its stage of infancy, nanotechnology has come a long way since its origins and is impacting the world as we know it today. From detecting or fighting cancer, delivering genes inside cells, protecting our skin through its application in sunscreen, and much more, nanotechnology is already heavily involved in our daily lives.2 With advances in technology as we have never seen before, new applications of nanotechnology is seen everyday. One such application is seen in the substance known as Vantablack (Vertically Aligned NanoTube Arrays). This paper will discuss the possible application of nanotechnology in the form of Vantablack on vehicles which will help facilitate the safe production of the already popular concept of fully autonomous vehicles.

The concept is a very simple design to increase the efficiency of sensors such as radars, lidars, and cameras in vehicles for detection of other vehicles.3 Autonomous vehicles rely heavily on these sensors, especially to help prevent collision with another vehicle. The most immediate solution to create a near perfect collision prevention system would be the implementation of expensive sensors, or computationally heavy algorithms. Both these measures are undesirable in the sense that it drives up the cost of production vehicle. Therefore, another solution would be the application of Vantablack and adoption of such procedures as standards in the auto industry.

As Vantablack is known for being the darkest substance, a universally adopted design painted on the vehicles will help in the recognition of other vehicles even in the most unfavorable conditions. Though the material was originally designed for space equipments to eliminate stray light to increase the efficiency of the telescope, other applications are seen from watchmakers, art, and much more.4  Therefore, the use of Vantablack for vehicle application is not completely out of scope. Furthermore, Vantablack is not only known to be efficient in the visible spectrum (350 nm - 900 nm) but other spectral ranges.5 Therefore, sensors such as lidar and radars which work outside the visible spectrum are also heavily affected by Vantablack. Many of the sensors implemented in vehicles for detection rely on the reflectivity of a surface. In the case of Vantablack, the portion of the vehicle painted with it will have almost 0 reflectivity due to its nanostructure. With unique and universal designs, sensors will immediately recognized neighboring vehicle from these unique Vantablack identifiers.

On May 2016, the first known fatal crash involving a car using automated driving feature was recorded. The Tesla Model S camera and radar system was unable to detect a semi-truck and collided at 74 mph.6 Upon further investigation it was noted that the camera and radar failed to pick up the semi-truck due to the fact that the sensors were not able to distinguish the white truck against the bright sky.7 This is fairly common in sensors such as cameras. Over-exposure for a camera make it impossible to function properly and this concept works the same for lidar and radars as the sun not only emits light in the visible spectrum, but other such as infrared, radio, etc.

The application of Vantablack on the semi-truck will have most likely prevented this crash. The Model S collided onto the massive white side of the semi-truck as it was making a turn. If the sides of the semi was partially painted with Vantablack, the white canvas would have had some unique identifier and the sensors would have easily detected the truck and informed the Tesla of the oncoming vehicle. Fully autonomous vehicles will not be the future without safety in mind. By eliminating or having a countermeasures of errors in sensors, the production of fully autonomous vehicles will not only be a dream, but a reality that we will see in the near future.

Currently, there are no technology implemented to detect vehicles outside of using the reflectivity of the surface. Using algorithms such as the Sobel Filter and Hough Line Transform, microchips inside cars are able to make out the outlines of other vehicles and detect these vehicles based on these outlines. However, in the case of the fatal crash involving the Tesla Model S, these outlines were not able to be detected due to environmental conditions. As mentioned previously, a better but more costlier sensor can be installed in these cars, but this does not solve the underlying issue of harsher environmental conditions which may still impede the functionality of the sensors.

Vantablack on the other hand, is completely different solution to tackle the problem of external influences that may interfere with the sensors. Made of vertically aligned carbon nanotube arrays, Vantablack is one the darkest substance as it absorbs 99.965% of radiation. Because of the structure of this substance, light is not bounced off the surface as with other substances.  Instead it becomes trapped by being continuously deflected among the tubes and is ultimately dissipated as heat.8 Even if unfavorable conditions made it impossible for the vehicle to make out the outline of vehicles, the Vantablack can act as a fail safe system that will ensure that neighboring vehicles will be detected.

In terms of artistic and design precedent, the automobile has a long history of external paint sources being applied. From advertisement stickers to personal paintings for aesthetic purposes, vehicles have been constantly painted if not repainted everyday. Therefore, the application of Vantablack is not a far fetched idea in the artistic and design sense as unique but aesthetically pleasing designs can be painted on the cars.

Furthermore, in the design aspect, the material has almost no mass meaning that it has no effect on the physical dynamics on the applied object (spacecraft, cars, etc).9 With no effect on the dynamic of the vehicle, the only limitation of the application of Vantablack would be due to the cost. With more than just aesthetics in mind, artist can now collaborate with automakers to bounce off ideas of the best designs for not just the sake of design, but the safety of the passengers who are to drive cars with autonomous features enabled in them.

Because of the scarcity and long process to culture Vantablack, the high cost and scarce availability of the substance does not seem to be a feasibly solution. However, with booming advances in technology, driving down the cost and making Vantablack more accessible is only a matter of time. A prime example can be seen in the production of lidar which initially had a hefty price tag over $100,000. However, due advancement of technology, the cost has been cut by 90%.10 Therefore, early research into the application of Vantablack

VII. Works Cited

1.  “What Is Nanotechnology?” Nano, National Nanotechnology Initiative,
https://www.nano.gov/nanotech-101/what/definition.

2.   Boyle, Rebecca. “7 Amazing Ways Nanotechnology Is Changing The World.” Popular

Science, 14 Nov. 2012, http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2012-11/7-
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3.  Cameron, Oliver. “An Introduction to LIDAR: The Key Self-Driving Car Sensor.”

Voyage, 9 May 2017, https://news.voyage.auto/an-introduction-to-lidar-the-key-
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4.   Vantablack. Surrey NanoSystems, https://www.surreynanosystems.com/vantablack.

5.   Anthony, Sebastian. “It's like Staring 'into a Black Hole': World's Darkest Material Will
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6. Bhuiyan, Johana. “A Federal Agency Says an Overreliance on Tesla's Autopilot
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7. Boudette, Neal E. “Tesla's Self-Driving System Cleared in Deadly Crash.” The New
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8.  “Vantablack.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 7 Oct. 2017,
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9.  Hullinger, Jessica. “6 Facts About Vantablack, the Darkest Material Ever Made.”
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10. Amadeo, Ron. “Google’s Waymo Invests in LIDAR Technology, Cuts Costs by 90
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VIII. Bibliography

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