Kindle, Nook Go To War

E Ink, the technology that enables e-readers, is about to make a leap onto the battlefield and not as an entertainment device for our troops.

Instead the technology is being adapted by British defense contractor BAE to create a camouflage system for armored vehicles that will render them almost invisible.

Yes, I said invisible.

According to an article in Popular Science, the active e-camouflage system will use an adaption of E Ink to project exact images of the surrounding area onto the armored vehicle’s hull, thus rendering it all but impossible to distinguish.

BAE has managed to create a colorized version of E Ink for this usage.

While the technology has not been implemented, BAE plans to test it on a Swedish armored vehicle in the near future, and it could be deployed within five years.

The necessity of having such camouflage is most noticeable in Afghanistan, where vehicles and troops are camouflaged for desert warfare but frequently find themselves fighting in green farm areas, becoming highly visible.