Artificial Gravity

Artificial gravity, a mainstay and boon to the space travel and shipping industry, was once thought impossible. The precise mechanics of its operation are still something of a mystery, given that there is only one manufacturer, Hargrove Gravimetrics (HG). This singular origin has led to boundless speculation over the years, none of which has ever been conclusively proven.

Appearance

All HG units are constructed from vat-grown nanocarbon, and measure anywhere from the size of a soda can (AG-1) up to the size of a small trash can (AG-20) for the largest. All AG units, or "cans" as they are commonly called, are cylindrical in shape, with only a power and data port visible on the outside. When powered and connected to a ship's network, internal hardware configures the AG field into whatever shape and strength is necessary for the application, based on the external input from the shipboard computers. Refinements and improvements have been ongoing for centuries, and each generation of AG units is capable of finer control, greater response time, and larger field size than the generation before it.

Current (generation XXI) units are capable of response times of under a tenth of a second under normal operating conditions, and dimensional accuracy of fifty microns or better. Most units in service today are generation XVI or better, but the oldest known unit still in service is a generation IV AG-12, currently operating for the flag bridge of the ISS Cortega, the battered and bruised can being widely regarded as a good luck charm by the crew. Each unit and model is rated for the volume of an AG field (in cubic meters) it can produce at peak output. Each casing is etched individually with this rating, as well as the serial number and other data. As each of these is a slightly different number, it can be posited that indeed there is something within the casing that cannot be manufactured reliably enough to have standard outputs, lending further credence to the crystal theory.

Unfortunately, no one has been able to prove this, as all attempts at dismantling and reverse engineering the units have failed. The nanocarbon casing is nearly impervious to mechanical breaching methods incapable of destroying the unit outright. Even less invasive methods likewise fail, internal sensors are able to detect tampering and activate chemical failsafes housed in the unit, rendering the core hardware and whatever comprises the field emitter useless and unrecognizable.

Operation

AG units have various levels of field intensity, reflected by their designation. An AG-1 can is capable of sustained operation at 1G across its entire field, and an AG-20 can sustain 20G. These field strengths can be lowered to suit the conditions of use as necessary, and having an AG field mush weaker than the can is capable of is commonplace, especially when used in high-acceleration vessels, where the additional capacity can be used to offset acceleration forces within the vessel and allow the occupants to function normally. These field strengths can also be exceeded if need be, but will void the Hargrove warranty, and exponentially increase the risk of failure. The level of field precision is inversely proportional to the strength of the AG unit, meaning that an AG-20 might be capable of accuracy to a few centimeters (when operated under ideal conditions) and an AG-1 can reach the limits of the technology.

AG fields cannot overlap, as interference with another unit will destabilize and shut one or both fields down, and has been known to blow one or both cans as well. As such, cans are situated throughout a ship in an array of nodes, each one configured to precisely interlock with each other. AG fields are configured for size as well as directionality of the pull, which is uniform across the field. AG units can vary their field strength or size, or their shape with flexibility enough to make them indispensable aboard ship. Many shipboard networks are configured to utilize the fields as an emergency containment in the case of minor hull breaches. This is achieved through the direct proportionality of an anti-gravity field.

A can rated for one hundred cubic meters at 1G can be reconfigured to envelop an area of one cubic meter, the field strength rising to up to a theoretical 100G for the same power draw. Most cans cannot support that kind of field strength for extended periods of time, but it this is a stopgap measure to begin with. A containment field simply creates a very small (often a millimeter thick) field shaped to conform to whatever hull breach has occurred, and raises the field strength enough to contain or at least slow significantly the loss of atmosphere.

Service

AG units can be, at times, temperamental items, blowing out or failing for seemingly no reason, akin to old Earth light bulbs. Early generation units were known to fail after a few days in service on rare occasions, but current generation units are much improved over their forebears, and the earliest recorded failure for a generation XXI can was four and a half months. Any defective HG unit can be returned to a distributor, where the customer will pay full price for a new equivalent, or slightly better (based on field rating, or current generation) unit. The defective one is sent back to the HG factory, and if it is determined that the malfunction is not due to negligence or end-user tampering, the purchase fee will be refunded, minus a small restocking and transaction fee. This excellent customer service has kept Hargrove Gravimetrics in the good graces of the public for many years, and there is no trend against this currently.

Planetary Gravity Generators

In the rare case of a planetoid or moon having insufficient gravity for normal living and working conditions, yet still being profitable enough to warrant the expense, HG also custom manufactures enormous AG units to accommodate even small moons. Extensive environmental testing, stressing tectonic and seismic measures, must be undertaken before construction of the generator can even begin. Once the data has been collected, the design work begins aboard Hargrove's orbital factory, and non-refundable payment is collected for the project, which may take years to complete. Once installed, a planetary generator is hooked to a dedicated power generator, and the field activated. A planetary field is not variable as a shipboard one is, and will maintain a spherical shape, with the point of attraction (or repulsion, in the case of a Dyson sphere) centered on the generator itself, necessitating placement at the planetoid's core. This often necessitates massive cooling systems to maintain the tunnel bored into the celestial body in question, as the generator is delivered whole, and can be as large as a frigate.