The many uses for inertial dampeners

[Carlobrand]

Okay, so I'm playing around with my deckplan for a good ol'-fashioned Free Trader, something we've all done at one time or another. (How does one post such things?) I'm sitting there thinking about loading and unloading cargo, because unlike the Subsidized Merchant, it isn't exactly obvious how the Free Trader does it, and the good ol'-fashioned Free Trader seems to have morphed a bit with the introduction of MegaTraveller.

Then it occurs to me, as I'm thinking about forklifts and loading bots and ramps, that a Free Trader (or any Trav merchantman) doesn't need any equipment to move cargo within its holds - just to get them into the hold. The grav plates and inertial dapers that hold the cargo under normal ground-G even as the ship maneuvers through space - they could as easily be used to MOVE the cargo as hold it all in place. And, according to MegaTrav, those plates don't take up much space - a couple percent of total volume, all told.

So, now I'm envisioning the loaders getting the cargo into the cargo bay, and the ship's computer running a pre-programmed routine to use the inertial dampers to lift the big container slightly off the deck and then give it a wee tiny bit of acceleration and deceleration to move it to where you want it, whereupon you fasten it tightly down ('cause I have a suspicion I can't apply that force selectively - it affects everything in the cargo bay) and then go on to the next container. Voila: the only folk who need actual equipment are the handlers at the port, to get the thing on and off the ship. And I'm thinking I maybe don't need a side door - which it's kinda tricky finding a place for - cause I can use the same system to lower the cargo gently to the ground or raise it up through a bottom bomb-bay door kind of arrangement.

And now I'm thinking the same system could be used to discomfit boarders - though it would tend to have the same effect on anyone in the affected region, there is definite advantage in an inertial dampener capable of counteracting a warship's 6G acceleration instead being used to subject boarders to 6G acceleration - at which point the boarders had better be wearing battledress, and they still won't be very effective. :devil:

 

[HG_B]

And now I'm thinking the same system could be used to discomfit boarders - though it would tend to have the same effect on anyone in the affected region, there is definite advantage in an inertial dampener capable of counteracting a warship's 6G acceleration instead being used to subject boarders to 6G acceleration - at which point the boarders had better be wearing battledress, and they still won't be very effective. :devil:

I did this when I played MT years ago. A few people tried to take over the ship. The ship was underway at 1G. As they got to the bridge at the end of a 12 meter passageway, I turned off the inertial comp & artificial grav. They "fell" 12 meters into a bulkhead. I then reversed the thrust and they "fell" all the way to the Bridge Iris valve. AND, one more time for good measure. :devil:

 

[MCEvans]

Is not that called "Grav Pong" :devil::file_21::devil:

 

[Reban]

Your idea of using the ship's grav plates to move containers is a good one. It reminds me a bit of Peristalsis in the small intestine where each ring of muscles contracts and pushes solids on to the next ring and again, and again.

If I was building a ship with this feature I think I'd mark out particular "lanes" that the containers move along. Two reasons:

First you can mark them off with snazzy red and white gravity hazard lines. Warning: Variable Gravity!

Second running the plates like this might mean more maintenance, so the lanes are covered by access covers that allow you to swap the plates out more often.


If you're running a lot of containers as cargo then loading from above or below makes a lot of sense. Think about how the containers get to the ship. Look at container handling equipment in big ports. Big cranes lift and place containers from above. You can also put containers on rails or monorails which whisk the container from where the warehouse are (maybe underground?) to the ships berth where the ship can lift the container "up" into the hull. Some ships might be built like WW2 bombers with large calmshell doors that open and allow containers to be hung on "bomb racks".

One word of caution. If you carry other cargoes or passengers a nice big ramp is great for getting loads aboard even if they have to make a sharp 90 degree turn into the hull. I'm thinking of driving a jeep up a ramp through the cargo door of a DC-3 in WW2.

 

[Zutroi]

Depending on the vessel's design, you might still want some kind of overhead hoist system to allow double-stacking of cargo containers, but I've got to agree that letting the internal grab system to do as much of the work as possible is an elegant solution!

 

[Fritz_Brown]

Why not put grav plates in the ceiling, too, Zutroi. Then you can turn those one when you need fine control stacking the second tier of containers. (Turning off the deck plates first so tidal forces don't tear your containers apart, of course.)

 

[Lycanorukke]

So, now I'm envisioning the loaders getting the cargo into the cargo bay, and the ship's computer running a pre-programmed routine to use the inertial dampers to lift the big container slightly off the deck and then give it a wee tiny bit of acceleration and deceleration to move it to where you want it, whereupon you fasten it tightly down ('cause I have a suspicion I can't apply that force selectively - it affects everything in the cargo bay) and then go on to the next container.

A lot would depend on what the cargo is. If the cargo is loosely packed in the crates it would 'fall' to the top of the container when the container is 'lifted' by using neg grav, and then rattle around inside when shifted sideways (as the vertical grav would have to be zero to let it 'hover' in place). Not so bad when transporting tightly packed or solid cargo, but with something that is sensitive to movement or fragile it could be bad.

"Ah good, our Zila wine shipment has arrived.....um...I mean our shipment of broken bottles...."

at which point the boarders had better be wearing battledress, and they still won't be very effective. :devil:

I would tink that 'boarding' battle dress has something like a grav belt integral to it - not to fly, but to set a constant G field surrounding the wearer so any attempt to play Grav Pong would fail. OTU ships have AG/IC systems so they would have to counter for it.

 

[Timerover51]

If you load from below, you have to have sufficient ground clearance to get the container under the ship, or a pit system which would allow containers to be loaded. However, consider the typical runs of a Free Trader to Class D and E starports. They are not apt to have very sophisticated loading and unloading equipment, such as overhead cranes or loading-unloading pits. If your ship has a lot of ground clearance, say at least 3 meters, your landing gear gets a bit more complicated, heavy, and space consuming. For stacking containers, start thinking about how much clearance you are going to need, and how heavy the containers are. A container ship in the real world is restricted to what ports it can go to by its loading and unloading requirements. Remember too, the receiving port has to be able to handle the container once it is off the ship.

As I see it, sophisticated cargo handling gear is going to be restricted to Class A, B, and C starports, where a Free Trader is going to be competing for cargo with established shipping lines or subsidized merchants. A Free Trader needs to be able to go anywhere with what cargo is available. I look at is as a passenger-carrying cargo plane, with either front and rear ramp loading, or maybe side ramp loading, although that gets a bit complex if you are unloading in orbit.

 

[aramis]

Why not put grav plates in the ceiling, too, Zutroi. Then you can turn those one when you need fine control stacking the second tier of containers. (Turning off the deck plates first so tidal forces don't tear your containers apart, of course.)

Some of use presume AG and IC require a flow of some pseudo-graviton from cathode to anode... so there are already plates in the ceiling.

You surround the enclosed volume, IMTU, to get that zero G field. And it's not readily localized.

 

[Otto Harkaman]

I thought everything was moved around on anti-grav floaters? Maybe the life raft is more of a cargo mover than a convertible sports car?

 

[Ran Targas]

I have always played it that the hold uses grav plates and tie downs to secure cargo; the tie downs for most of he time but the grav plates kick in when the ship is maneuvering to counteract any odd acceleration. It makes crossing the hold a dangerous prospect only to be performed by trained professional spacers. Passengers should be warned of the variable gravity and discouraged from snooping around.

 

[Carlobrand]

I have always played it that the hold uses grav plates and tie downs to secure cargo; the tie downs for most of he time but the grav plates kick in when the ship is maneuvering to counteract any odd acceleration. It makes crossing the hold a dangerous prospect only to be performed by trained professional spacers. Passengers should be warned of the variable gravity and discouraged from snooping around.

That could be rather hard on your cargo. Given that the ship should already be equipped to carry occasional fragile cargos, and that there doesn't seem to be any expense involved in using the existing inertial damper system, I don't see an advantage. A locked door with a sensor alarm should be adequate to discourage all but the most committed and skilled snoopers.