BUILDING CLADDING SYSTEMS COMPRISING SWITCHABLE MATERIALS AND METHODS OF USE THEREOF

1 . A building cladding system comprising:

a substrate comprising wood, cement, or a polymer; and

a coating on the substrate, the coating comprising a switchable material:

wherein varying a voltage or a temperature on the coating changes an appearance of the building cladding system by changing light absorption by the coating.

2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the coating further comprises a conductive material.

3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the switchable material comprises an electrochromic material, a photochromic material, a thermochromic material, or a combination thereof.

4 . The system of claim 3 , wherein the switchable material comprises an electrochromic material, and the electrochromic material comprises a metal, a metal alloy, or a viologen.

5 . The system of claim 4 , wherein the metal or metal alloy comprises tungsten, a tungsten alloy, molybdenum, a molybdenum alloy, iridium, an iridium alloy, vanadium, a vanadium alloy, nickel, a nickel alloy, or a combination thereof.

6 . The system of claim 4 , wherein the electrochromic material comprises a viologen, and the viologen is methyl viologen, ethyl viologen, heptyl viologen, a polyviologen, a viologen-functionalized conjugated polymer, or a combination thereof.

7 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the coating comprises a conductive material that forms a first layer of the coating, and wherein the switchable material forms a second layer of the coating.

8 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the coating further comprises a primer layer, the primer layer being adjacent to the substrate.

9 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the coating further comprises a non-conducting layer that forms an outermost layer of the coating, the non-conducting layer being transparent or translucent.

10 . The system of claim 1 , further comprising a controller configured to vary a voltage, temperature, or wavelength of light applied to the coating.

11 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the controller comprises an actuator configured to vary the voltage, temperature, or wavelength of light by mechanical user input.

12 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the controller comprises a microprocessor configured to receive user input wirelessly and vary the voltage, temperature, or wavelength of light applied to the coating based on the user input.

13 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the coating comprises:

a primer layer adjacent the substrate;

a first layer comprising a conductive material;

a second layer comprising the switchable material, wherein the switchable material comprises an electrochromic material; and

a non-conducting layer that is transparent or translucent.

14 . A method of changing the appearance of the building cladding system of claim 1 , the method comprising:

applying a voltage to the coating, wherein the coating absorbs a first wavelength of light; and

changing the voltage, wherein the coating absorbs a second wavelength of light different than the first wavelength of light.

15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein each of the first wavelength of light and the second wavelength of light is between 380 nm and 760 nm.

16 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the system further comprises a controller configured to change the voltage, wherein the controller comprises a microprocessor, and wherein changing the voltage with the controller includes receiving user input wirelessly by the microprocessor.

17 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the controller further comprises a sensor, the microprocessor being configured to change the voltage applied to the coating based on a parameter detected by the sensor.

18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the parameter detected by the sensor is light, temperature, or moisture.

19 . A method of changing an appearance of building cladding, the building cladding comprising a coating that comprises a conductive material and an electrochromic material, the method comprising:

applying a voltage to the building cladding, wherein the coating absorbs a first wavelength of visible light; and

changing the voltage with a controller comprising a microprocessor and a sensor by receiving user input wirelessly by the microsensor, wherein the microprocessor changes the voltage based on a parameter detected by the sensor, and wherein changing the voltage causes the coating to absorb a second wavelength of visible light different from the first wavelength of visible light;

wherein the coating forms an outermost surface of the building cladding.

20 . The method of claim 19 , wherein the parameter is light, temperature, or moisture.