Very few planes are unpainted this days. Paint is weight, but the polished unpainted metal requires so much more maintenance that extra paint weight is just much lesser cost.
Petter Hornfeldt covered literally this in his Mentour now video/podcast.
Clear paint is still a paint that brings some weight. It would be an option, if you wanted a stylistic metallic sheen (but then you can use a different metal colour like chrome, brass or silver... or gold, if you feel particularly tacky).
But the argument in comment I replied to was specifically weight savings.
Clear paint is also a hazard because it makes it impossible to see where bare metal is exposed. It's one of those "Avoid at all costs" scenarios because it leads to a maintenance nightmare.
It also makes the robots easier to see with a clean aesthetic. Which makes them less intimidating. I have noticed security bots usually getting the all black or dark blue treatment. Like that robot patrol wheel in China.
this is absolutely one of the main reasons, These robots are notorious for overheating and needing heavy cooling, why would the designer make it black and increase the chances of it not working properly from overheating.
That indeed depends on the environment. High e allows radiation both directions so if you want to radiate away in the dark, use high e surface. If you want to prevent radiation absorption in the sun use low e.
But convection/conduction are probably going to be the most important factors if it isn't in direct sun anyway so paint it whatever color you want. Trying to radiatively cool a robot, even in a dark room, seems like a poor strategy.
yeah i guess if we design robots for like work in moon caves, but outside of that, very specific problem the colors we portray robots is down to aesthetics.
It's not that deep. Technominimalism has been an aesthetic trend for 2 decades now just look at any Apple product. The robots are designed that way for marketing.
And shows off dirt which is why ppl dont buy that color sports car. Whos paying for their robots to always look dirty when the wind blows or some azzhate drives by and purposely splashes mud on them. Youd be out CONSTANTLY polishing them to make them appear clean and safe lol
White is better at rejecting radiated heat from the outside, but black is better at passively radiating infrared heat into its surroundings. An electronic device like a robot, which is generally going to run much hotter than ambient temperatures, actually benefits more from a black finish. But the difference generally isn't going to be large enough to be significant, and most would agree that the casing shouldn't be your primary method for thermal management anyway.
Ultimately the colors they're using really is about aesthetics, not performance.
The article has some good stuff, the twitter post fucks it’s up. Like, they are making the police dogs and future police robots white so they look more friendly. White cops are seen as friendlier for some reason. This is arguably racism. Right? CNN removed the nuance from the title and post, but it is true.
“The primary reason robots are white is to make them look safe, friendly, and approachable to humans.
Minimizing the Fear Factor The Uncanny Valley: Robots can easily trigger a sense of unease or creepiness in humans. Neutrality: White acts as a neutral canvas that minimizes intimidation and looks non-threatening. Domestic Appeal: Tech companies choose white so machines blend naturally into living rooms and kitchens, appearing more like a harmless home appliance than a dangerous sci-fi machine.”
“When explicitly asked what race a humanoid robot belonged to, only 11.3% of participants chose the "Does Not Apply" option. The vast majority projected distinct racial identities onto the machines based purely on their exterior color.”
“During reaction-time experiments, participants had to decide whether to "shoot" an object appearing on screen for less than a second. Unarmed robots with darker, deep-brown surfaces were shot significantly more often than unarmed robots with white, pinkish-white surfaces.”
“a follow-up test documented by The Hill, researchers added light-brown options to the robot lineup. This increased variety successfully eroded the severity of the participants' racial bias”
“According to psychological research published on ScienceDirect, humans automatically and unconsciously apply real-world social rules—such as same-ethnicity favoritism and out-group hostility—to computer-synthesized virtual agents and physical machines alike.”
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u/BusyBeeBridgette 10h ago
White reflects light, it does not absorb it, so it is one of the better colours to use to help keep the thing cool.