South Korea Grants Construction of Invisible Skyscraper

roseofbattle

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Apr 18, 2011
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South Korea Grants Construction of Invisible Skyscraper


Now you see it, now you don't.

With a system of cameras and LEDs, the proposed skyscraper named Infinity Tower in South Korea will be able to seemingly disappear in thin air. Bad news is that it's near an airport.

The Infinity Tower design calls for 16 weatherproof cameras distributed at three different heights. The images, after processing, will be projected to 1,500 LED strips to create the illusion of invisibility. The cameras detect the sky and use the images as an invisibility cloak. The effect would only be activated for a few hours each day when weather conditions are good. The invisibility effect won't be used at night because of the lights inside the tower.

GDS Architects, in collaboration with Samoo Architects and A&U, is in charge of construction of the tower just outside of Seoul. Their design won the International Idea Competition out of 146 entries from 46 countries in 2008.

"Instead of symbolizing prominence as another of the world's tallest and best towers, our solution aims to provide the world's first invisible tower, showcasing innovative Korean technology while encouraging a more global narrative in the process," Charles Wee, design principal of the GDS design team, said.

The project needs more funding in order to be completed; invisibility for a large building comes at a high price. The building is due to be completed next year, and it may also include a theme park, restaurants, and an observation deck.

Source: Wired [http://archinect.com/GDSARCHITECTS/release/world-s-first-invisible-highrise-the-450m-tall-infinity-tower-granted-permit]

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TiberiusEsuriens

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Jun 24, 2010
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roseofbattle said:
With a system of cameras and LEDs, the proposed skyscraper named Infinity Tower in South Korea will be able to seemingly disappear in thin air. Bad news is that it's near an airport.
That was the first thing I thought, but when you think about it that really isn't an issue. No plane should be flying near a skyscraper in the first place, but ALL flight traffic goes through Air Control agencies. Planes using these airways barely use their windshields to actually do anything, if they can see through them at all, because they are heavily reliant on computer systems. Essentially the only way that this could get screwy is if someone pulled a Breaking Bad.
 

CriticalMiss

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Jan 18, 2013
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They should build some smaller towers around the base to produce the illusion of giving North Korea the finger. The invisible finger.
 

Li Mu

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Oct 17, 2011
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I sense a cunning scam.

"So where's the building we paid you to build?"

" We built it...can't you see it?"

"No"

"Only cool people can see it"

"Oooh...now I see it..."

Designers then run off with billions of won.
 

Angelous Wang

Lord of I Don't Care
Oct 18, 2011
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These type of invisibility devices typically only work perfectly from certain visual angles.

They work perfectly when you look at the object face-on because that's the image LED typically displays, but when you look on it from a diagonal direction you can see a heavily distorted object and especially the outline of the object against the background.

In order for it to work perfectly you would need to change the image LED to match the direction of the viewer's line of sight, which is impossible since buildings like this tend to have hundreds if not thousands of people looking at them at once.

Think it was in the movie Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol that they showed a little demonstration of this during the part in the Kremlin. It's also why the SHIELD base could use this tech to "vanish" in the Avengers, because everyone could only see the base from one direction (below).

I don't think it will be a problem for aeroplanes, even when cloaked, as aeroplanes would have an above/diagonal line of sight to the building.
 

Gali

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Nov 19, 2009
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Very impressive.

But they should have called it Ghost or Banshee Tower. :p
 

=Doc=

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Jan 18, 2011
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Imagine you're a bird. Flying around in Korea, relieved that you've managed to get past that damn airport without incident, when suddenly the sky before you becomes slightly pixelated..

Planes, probably no problem. Birds, problem. Big, splattery problem.

LordMonty said:
Sounds fun guess its as goo d a waste of money as any.
This made me laugh SO hard. Thanks dude! :-D
 

1337mokro

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Dec 24, 2008
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What a waste of screens. Why would you not want to see that giant phallic symbol? If you are going to build a giant cock building you don't want it to turn Blue!
 

Mromson

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The building is to be completed NEXT YEAR?! I hope you mean the PLANS for the building are to be completed within the next year...
 

-Dragmire-

King over my mind
Mar 29, 2011
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The design looks like a giant sword with the hilt in the ground...

Uh oh... They're arming their giant invisible robots! We're Dooooooomed!

We all thought the threat was to the north... we were wrong.
 

Yopaz

Sarcastic overlord
Jun 3, 2009
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Li Mu said:
I sense a cunning scam.

"So where's the building we paid you to build?"

" We built it...can't you see it?"

"No"

"Only cool people can see it"

"Oooh...now I see it..."

Designers then run off with billions of won.
Yeah, I was thinking along these lines too.

OT: I'm not sure what to make of this... on the one hand it's incredibly silly. On the other hand it's an invisible skyscraper. It is kinda awesome.
 

Strazdas

Robots will replace your job
May 28, 2011
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TiberiusEsuriens said:
roseofbattle said:
With a system of cameras and LEDs, the proposed skyscraper named Infinity Tower in South Korea will be able to seemingly disappear in thin air. Bad news is that it's near an airport.
That was the first thing I thought, but when you think about it that really isn't an issue. No plane should be flying near a skyscraper in the first place, but ALL flight traffic goes through Air Control agencies. Planes using these airways barely use their windshields to actually do anything, if they can see through them at all, because they are heavily reliant on computer systems. Essentially the only way that this could get screwy is if someone pulled a Breaking Bad.
you know, there is actually a mandatory safety regulation forcing every skyscraper in europe (and i believe USA too) to have blinking lights at the top of it so "planes wouldnt crash into it at night". this could beo ne of those carryover from when planes used to fly lower, but we actualyl got regulations against it.
sure in perfect contditions a plane wont be around there. but lets say we got a landing in a storm or a emergency landing, it may land byu flying onver the city, noise regulations be damned, and thats where seeing you are above this new skyscraper is important.


Mromson said:
The building is to be completed NEXT YEAR?! I hope you mean the PLANS for the building are to be completed within the next year...
stuff can be built fast if you know who to bribe. real fast.

=Doc= said:
Imagine you're a bird. Flying around in Korea, relieved that you've managed to get past that damn airport without incident, when suddenly the sky before you becomes slightly pixelated..

Planes, probably no problem. Birds, problem. Big, splattery problem.
well brids already crash at regular skyscrapers becuase they cant see glass anyway. this wouldnt be that much different.
 

Vegosiux

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May 18, 2011
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Strazdas said:
stuff can be built fast if you know who to bribe. real fast.
Truly. A few friends and I decided to build a brewery yesterday morning. By noon, we were all too hammered to walk already.

As for on topic, well...I'm going with the "Yeah, sounds like a good waste of money as any" crowd on this one. With drooling sarcasm, of course.
 

Vrach

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Jun 17, 2010
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Episode of Simpsons comes to mind...
"It looks so much better... a beautiful sky blue" *crash*
 

Chimpzy_v1legacy

Warning! Contains bananas!
Jun 21, 2009
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our solution aims to provide the world's first invisible tower, showcasing innovative Korean technology
This is hilariously contradictory.

"We will stand out by blending into the background!"

Floppertje said:
would that work on tanks too??
Yes, it sort of does. A company called BAE Systems unveiled 'Adaptiv' [http://defense-update.com/20110905_bae-adaptiv_camouflage.html] a few years ago, a form of active camouflage that works relatively similar to what they're doing with that skyscraper, although it's meant to fool thermal imaging and not so much the naked eye.
 

Psychobabble

. . . . . . . .
Aug 3, 2013
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"This just in, Wonder Woman crashes invisible jet, into invisible tower."

"When asked for comment fellow Super Friends said only 'Wonder Twin Powers Activate' and something that sounded oddly like whale song."
 

Micalas

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Mar 5, 2011
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The super "auteur" architects are some of the dumbest people in the world. If they weren't so smart, no one would give them the time of day.