Researchers in England say they've been inspired by the natural camouflage expertise of the squid to create an artificial skin capable of changing its color or pattern at the flip of a switch.

Scientists at the University of Bristol have fashioned artificial versions of biological chromatophores, small pigmented cells in the skin of cephalopods like squid that the animals can contract and expand to change skin color, texture and pattern.

The artificial skin is created using electroactive dielectric elastomer, a compliant, soft smart material that can effectively mimic the actions of natural biological chromatophores, the researchers write in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface.

Individual chromatophore cells in the artificial skin are controlled by simple rules that allow them to sense their surroundings and regulate their expansion and contraction, the researchers explain.

Sets of the artificial chromatophores arranged in linear arrays proved capable of creating a variety of patterns, they say, including dynamic shifting patterns as seen in cephalopods in nature.

One of those patterns which the researchers were able to reproduce is known as the Passing Cloud display, in which a squid can create bands of color that move in a wave-like fashion over its skin.

In the squid, numerous dynamic and complex skin patterns are most commonly used to blend into the environment, divert or distract predators, or to communicate with other animals, the scientists pointed out.

"Our ultimate goal is to create artificial skin that can mimic fast-acting active camouflage and be used for smart clothing such as cloaking suits and dynamic illuminated clothing," says Aaron Fishman, a researcher in the university's Department of Engineering Mathematics.

"The cloaking suit could be used to blend into a variety of environments, such as in the wild," he says. "It could also be used for signaling purposes, for example search and rescue operations when people who are in danger need to stand out."

Further research is under way with the goal of improving control of pattern and color propagation and to dynamically generate additional types of patterns based on other local rules, the researchers say.

That could allow mimicking of more types of color and pattern camouflage found in natural environments, they add.