To look into the future and see dust sounds like a prediction for pessimists. But we're not talking ground dirt - listen carefully and there's a growing buzz around a nanotechnology idea known as "smart dust".
The notion of wireless sensors small enough to be mixed into a surface coating or embedded in a composite certainly calls for an optimistic leap in miniaturisation. If we get there, though, a revolution in aircraft design may be just over the horizon.
Some fairly obvious applications present themselves. Layers of nano-scale sensors could provide a real-time picture of everything from the structural integrity of the airframe to its icing condition or the air flow over control surfaces. Adding no weight and needing no wiring, such sensors could be anywhere and everywhere, enhancing fly-by-wire systems to help cut fuel burn and operate more safely.
Imagine modular avionics capable of accepting new datastreams; aircraft new or old could easily be upgraded by brushing on, say, some ice-detection paint.
Look further and imagine what could be done with vastly more data. Would a real-time picture of the airframe allow engineers to slash some mass? Would more data from the control surfaces give remote UAV pilots a better "feel" for their aircraft? Would efficient but hard-to-control shapes become practical?
Smart dust may be as big as we can imagine.
Source: Flight International
