Smart Shoes

[Patron Zero]

Mind the really cool Reeboks that Ms.Ripley wore in Aliens were something of an inspiration, I would guess fashion was not entirely the reason for her choice in footwear.

IMTU those nifty high-tops had a few features built in that a casual observer might miss at first glance; One very useful function would be the soles having a built-in set of magnets which can be manually 'powered up' in the absence of gravity or the need to be anchored to the deck.

One activates said magnets by striking the heel of either shoe from the rear, the coils stay charged from a very low level 'leeching' of power from the ship's operating grav plates but not enough draw to be a maintenance issue.

One other feature is when the mag-plates are activated, the shoes inflate several internal bladders to 'tighten up' the fit and keep the wearer from floating out of said footwear.

As a matter of safety, typical shoes will also have a transponder-RFID chip embedded to allow the ship's computer to monitor a crew member's whereabouts and in some instances act as a go-no go lockout system to cabin doors and other restricted areas.

 

[zonk]

um... Your ships use steel, or some ferrous metal, in their bulkheads and overheads?

Isn't that passé?

 

[coliver988]

um... Your ships use steel, or some ferrous metal, in their bulkheads and overheads?

Isn't that passé?

The modern shoes use Gecko adhesive systems: nano-follicles to attach to almost any surface

 

[Patron Zero]

um... Your ships use steel, or some ferrous metal, in their bulkheads and overheads?

Isn't that passé?

Generally speaking, there will always be some surfaces that will be steel or other ferrous metals, most to be likely found in engineering or hanger-cargo areas.

Not all ships IMTU are this year's model, many have quite the mileage on their hulls but lovingly maintained by current owners and given the occasional new set of 'tyres'.

 

[Andrew Boulton]

As a matter of safety, typical shoes will also have a transponder-RFID chip embedded to allow the ship's computer to monitor a crew member's whereabouts and in some instances act as a go-no go lockout system to cabin doors and other restricted areas.

Heh, inflate the bladders and power up the magnets, and he's going nowhere!

 

[abomination]

If the crew were anything like some of the guys I've worked with. They'd be constantly kicking each other in the heels to make the shoes unexpectedly stick & the wearer fall on his face.

 

[Patron Zero]

Assumptions

If the crew were anything like some of the guys I've worked with. They'd be constantly kicking each other in the heels to make the shoes unexpectedly stick & the wearer fall on his face.

I felt that such hijinks were pretty much a given to happen when I placed the original post, seems our respective Traveller Universes are not quite so different after all !

Sidebar: In Japan industrial workspaces employ the passive RDIF chip technology to track employees as well as make autonomous machines, read robots, be aware of the presence of human workers in their operating environments.

 

[G. Kashkanun Anderson]

One activates said magnets by striking the heel of either shoe from the rear, the coils stay charged from a very low level 'leeching' of power from the ship's operating grav plates but not enough draw to be a maintenance issue.

One other feature is when the mag-plates are activated, the shoes inflate several internal bladders to 'tighten up' the fit and keep the wearer from floating out of said footwear.

If the crew were anything like some of the guys I've worked with. They'd be constantly kicking each other in the heels to make the shoes unexpectedly stick & the wearer fall on his face.

Actually, I don't see any need for a manual mechanism to be installed in the shoes at all, except as a fail-safe device. If you can build a switch into a shoe, then it should be fairly simple to come up with one that works as a breaker mechanism, coming online when the area gravity (or inertial force, if that's your game) falls below a certain threshold. If you want to get really overboard about it, you could even decide its some kind of molecular switch that's actually woven into the fabric of the shoe.

The heel switch would still have usage as the fail-safe; but being that it would only be used very rarely, the manufacturers could come up with an activation sequence that's a little more involved -- and less likely to be "accidentally" invoked -- than a single click. :smirk: