Approved Tech Fornax-series Portable Molecular Furnaces

[Gir Quee]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Intent: To provide a miniaturized, portable molecular furnace that can be carried and moved around by one person
• Image Source: "TECHNO PROP sci-fi KITBASH PACK" by Voloshenko, edited by yours truly
• Canon Link: N/A
• Permissions: N/A
• Primary Source: N/A

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

• Manufacturer: Lucerne Personal Defense
• Affiliation: Directorate, The High Republic, Lucerne Personal Defense Customers
• Market Status: Closed-Market
• Model: Fornax-series Portable Molecular Furnace
• Modularity: Yes - comes in different sizes, ranging from small backpack units to cargo crate-sized versions
• Production: Mass-Produced.
• Material: molecular furnace components, Bia series Portable Fusion Generator, duravlex casing

SPECIAL FEATURES

• Molecular Furnace: Fornax is a miniaturized and somewhat simplified molecular furnace, which allows it to convert one type of material into another. The input chamber is designed to accept different feeding mechanisms based on the fuel source, allowing gas or water to be pumped into the feed mechanism or solid materials to be pushed into the furnace. Similarly, the output chamber has different attachable containers to collect finished product, such as sealable cylinders for gases and liquids, and open top boxes for solid materials. The outputted material, if it is a solid material, can be programmed to be produced in different sizes, shapes, and densities - assuming the shape is simple enough - this is typically in blocks, rods or other simple prisms.
• Programmable: Fornax has a small databank that allows it to be programmed to produce up to several dozen simple compoundss, regardless of what the furnace is fed. Common output substances include water, ethanol, oxygen, orveth blaster gas, duracrete slurry, durasteel, permex, foamcast, corellian epoxy, insulfoam, bi-state memory plastic, plasto-canvas, bistate gel, induce helium-3, deuterium, and even detonite. However, Fornax can only produce one substance at a time.

STRENGTHS

• Portable Means of Production: Few things of Fornax's size can make refined materials out of such a relatively small sized package.
• Programmable: Fornax can be reprogrammed on the fly by the end user to start making different materials in different sizes and shapes.
• Variable Input and Output: Like other molecular furnaces, the Fornax series can convert different types of matter into other types of matter, making it extremely versatile and very useful in resource-poor environments.

WEAKNESSES

• Heavy The Fornax-series are fairly heavy for their size between the need for thick protective casing and the industrial grade components of the furnace.
• Simple Substances Only: Unlike larger molecular furnaces, Fornax can only make relatively simple substances such as common metals and simple chemicals. Making exotic metals or complex biological fluids are simply out of the question.
• Variable Production Speed: At molecular furnace of the Fornax's size, the similarity of the input and output materials are important, as it takes less time and power to transmute one material to another. Consequently, it is very simply and quick for the Fornax to convert one gas like carbon dioxide to pure oxygen, or to convert stone to metal. But it takes a lot longer to change materials that are very structurally different, such as turning a gas like carbon dioxide into durasteel.

DESCRIPTION
While Lucerne Personal Defense (LPD) is largely concerned with producing weapons, armor, and other tactical gear for galactic militaries, the company sometimes finds itself dipping its toes in other markets based on its own needs or to meet a niche need of its main customer base. The Fornax-series Molecular Furnace is a good example of the latter - while molecular furnaces have been common in the construction world for thousands of years, those furnaces are typically integrated into massive, construction droids or spacegoing vessels. Yet there has been a persistent interest in the technology from expeditionary ground military forces, who may find themselves suddenly needing certain materials while they were far away from their home base. Such a device could allow military units to theoretically turn sand into durasteel plates to uparmor and repair vehicles or turn putrid sludge into drinkable water. Unlike most ground warfare-oriented companies, LPD could lean on expertise in that area from its parent company, Lucerne Labs with its Hephaestus-class Factory Ships, to try and make that persistent interest an actual product.

Their end result was the Fornax-series Portable Molecular Furnaces, a basic molecular furnace design which could be scaled from the size of a backpack to a typical cargo crate. This makes it relatively easy for inclusion into the logistics chain of most ground forces, as the smallest version can be carried by the average person and the larger, quicker production versions can be carried in many vehicles. But this miniaturization process did not come without costs, and compared to the larger molecular furnaces found in large construction droids and starships, the Fornax can only make basic compounds at a much less quicker rate depending on the complexity of the transmutation. It may only take a few minutes to convert sludge into water, but it can easily take almost an hour for a Fornax to convert enough sand into metal plating to cover a soft-skinned vehicle - a feat which larger units can do in a handful of minutes. Still, there is few competitors out there in this market, and any commander and soldier is going to pick an option which at least gives them access to a material over the option of not having the material at all, or days later when the next supplies come in.

Fornax-series Portable Molecular Furnaces are commonly found in logistic organizations of militaries and at the headquarter levels of many ground units, where they are able to help mitigate unexpected supply shortages in an organization, though they are sometimes directly forward to units on the battlefields themselves where the units aren't expected to be able to regularly receive supplies - such as remote outposts or long-range patrol groups. Given that every military unit needs supplies, and many civilian expeditionary groups do as well such as explorers and prospectors, the Fornax has a large potential market and has sold well so far upon its introduction. Market research has forecasted that the Fornax is likely to be in production for a long time to meet the demand of this large market.

 

[Krass Wyms]

Easy enough

Approved