Approved Tech Life's Touch

[Ultimatum]

Life’s Touch​

Image Source: N/A

Intent: To create a revolutionary power source
Development Thread: As needed
Manufacturer: LOOM
Model: TL Model
Affiliation: LOOM
Modularity: Can be placed alongside different devices to allow for varied usage environments
Production: Mass
Material: Computer components, Plasteel, Durasteel, Bondite

Strengths:
Allows for a near limitless number of devices to be powered in a given area
Can be attached to generators, starships, satellites to allow for varied use

Weaknesses:
Depending on power draw the area of effect of the device may be quite small
If a device draws more power than is available then the device will not receive enough power
If the device that supplies power is destroyed or otherwise disabled then power to all devices is terminated until the device is reactivated
Electricity builds in organic bodies require grounding or protection to avoid long term health issues
Metal structures, droids, buildings, vehicles, etc that are connected to a ground will negate the effects of Life's Touch inside the enclosed space

Description:
Ever found your datapad running out of power at just the wrong moment? Tired of droids requiring a couple hours of recharge? Want to increase the time your tanks spend on the frontline?

That is where the Life’s Touch comes in. Through the use of technology that was once quite prolific, specifically pre-spacetravel, there is now the possibility to use electromagnetic fields to fill an area with electricity that can be tapped into by specifically designed devices. The amount of energy in the field, and therefore how much is available to the equipment, is based on the area it is supposed to effect and the power source that the Touch is attached to. The Touch is capable of being wired into most modern technology, including reactors, solar satellites, and various electronics.

A functional example is that of a powerplant in a city, should the Touch be attached it will project the power into a designated area. Depending on the size of this area, the amount of power condensed into the field and therefore how much will be transmitted to receiving devices will vary. Say a one kilometer city was powered by this then the amount of power in that area would be scaled down from a meter a thousand times, given that a powerplant is meant to power a city there would be no problem here. The difference is convenience, no longer are devices reliant on batteries, though backups should be kept available in case of malfunctions, but can move to and from any place within the field and still receive power. If the field that the plant was emitting was increased in size however the amount of power available would decrease, as is the case if a device with a large power draw was activated. The opposite is true if the range id decreased, then the available power is increased. If the power supply is increased in strength then the available power increases or the area of effect can increase.

Technologically this device requires two parts, the first that it be the Life’s Touch emitter be attached to a power source, while the Touch receiver must be connected to any technology that is intended to be powered by the Touch. The receptors are designed to differ in size and energy capacity based on the requirements of the technology they are connected to. Generally for smaller electronics they are small devices that appear to be microchips that are placed inside of what is intended to be powered attached to the power supply.

Electrical surges are very unlikely, however should such an event occur the power will be directed to expanding the area of effect rather than increasing the available supply. As this is only temporary the effect zone will decrease back to normal limits once the surge has passed. Should the power source that the Touch is attached to, or the Touch itself be damaged or hindered this will directly affect the available power supply to other devices. If the Touch of its source is destroyed then the power supplied to the area of effect disappears and devices will no longer receive power.

An unexpected side effect of the system is that the energy field can have a potentially lethal negative effect on organics. While most artificial life will not be overly affected by the power, as any electricity that clings to them will simply travel straight to the ground, organics appear to naturally store some of the power in the nervous system. It builds up inside the axon regions of the cells. This electricity causes misfires in the nervous system which can manifest itself as twitches, personality disorders, and in more severe cases seizures. The electricity can easily be dealt so as to avoid the negative side effects, simply touching a ground or wearing insulators will remove or protect the organic respectively. The effect is not seen when the individual is exposed to the field for short intervals, however the longer that a person is exposed to the field the more severe the consequences. Fortunately, the worst side effects requires months of constant exposure before they will manifest. This phenomenon appears to be more distinct in areas where there is a small field and high energy output. To avoid large loss of life in highly populated areas, most cities are suggested to give their citizens protective clothing or maintain grounding rods in regular intervals so that organics may remove the electrical charge before it reaches critical levels.

Further on this, the electricity field appears to be weakened considerably in buildings with large amount of metal construction. This means that to power devices inside of such buildings there will need to be a receiver Life's Touch on the outside of the building which is connected to either another emitter inside the building or to a power storage for dissemination throughout the building in more conventional methods. If using the former then there will need to be grounding rods in easy reach of those inside. If the latter then the building can be treated as a rest stop, as organics will not have the above mentioned electrical build up in their bodies.

Primary Source: N/A

 

[Gir Quee]

RESEARCH REVIEW
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Star Wars Canon:
Pending initial review
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Starwars Chaos:
Pending initial review
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WITHOUT DEV THREADS
Pending initial review
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WITH DEV THREADS
Pending Initial review
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SUGGESTIONS
Pending Inital review

 

[Gir Quee]

This looks like a form of wireless power transfer to me.

If a device draws more power than is available then there will be significant power issues

Does this mean that the device drawing power than what is available will not have enough power?

to fill an area with electricity that can be tapped into by specifically designed devices.

Is this literally a field of visible electricity (something like lightning)? Or are we talking about the use of a field acting as conductor between the power source to the receiving device?


I would recommend expanding on the potential health problems of this technology for organics. For example, entering this field of electricity does not sound like it would be safe for droids or organics. Likewise, if something crosses whatever is acting as the conductor between the power source and the receiving device, that something is probably going to have problems. What those problems are is probably going to be linked to the method of energy transmission.

 

[Ultimatum]

[member="Gir Quee"]
I took some of the concepts of that for this idea.

Does this mean that the device drawing power than what is available will not have enough power?

Exactly. Say a generator makes 3 units of energy one drill take 1 unit so it could feasibly power three drills, but if there is a bigger drill that uses 2 units and one attempts to use two regular drills and one bigger one then the various devices will all try to draw the max amount they can. I will reword that to make that more clear.

Is this literally a field of visible electricity (something like lightning)? Or are we talking about the use of a field acting as conductor between the power source to the receiving device?

It is an electromagnetic field, entirely invisible to the naked eye. The devices act as a two step system, the first part is on the power source which acts like an emitter while the second part is attached to the device that is to be powered this acts like the receiver. The field cannot be accessed by other electronics and with that ability would be relatively safe for droids and organics. What would you suggest for this?

 

[Ultimatum]

After further research into the subject, I believe it will be quite interesting to work with the health risks and potentially related downsides. I will spend a little while making adjustments and update accordingly.
Thank you.
[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

[member="Ultimatum"], let me know when you're finished updating this then.

It is an electromagnetic field, entirely invisible to the naked eye. The devices act as a two step system, the first part is on the power source which acts like an emitter while the second part is attached to the device that is to be powered this acts like the receiver. The field cannot be accessed by other electronics and with that ability would be relatively safe for droids and organics. What would you suggest for this?

The closest real life equivalent to what you're looking for that I know of offhand is resonant inductive coupling.

 

[Ultimatum]

[member="Gir Quee"]

Thanks again for helping me here, if has been fun to work through and expand the initial idea to a more filled concept. Please continue to make suggestions and what have you as you see fit.

So I added the following to Weaknesses:
"Electricity builds in organic bodies require grounding at intervals to avoid lethal electrocution
Metal that is directly in touch with a ground acts like an insulator"

and the following paragraphs to the end of the submissions:
"
An unexpected side effect of the system is that the energy field can have a potentially lethal negative effect on organics. While most artificial life will not be overly affected by the power, as any electricity that clings to them will simply travel strait to the ground, organics appear to naturally store some of the power. Akin to static electricity it builds up and releases when touching a ground. Unlike static electricity, the sheer amount of power stored can be within lethal ranges that are released when one touches a ground. This phenomenon appears to be more distinct in areas where there is a small field and high energy output. To avoid large loss of life in highly populated areas, most cities are suggested to maintain grounding rods in regular intervals so that organics may remove the electrical charge before it reaches critical levels.

Further on this, the electricity field appears to be weakened considerably in buildings with large amount of metal construction. This means that to power devices inside of such buildings there will need to be a receiver Life's Touch on the outside of the building which is connected to either another emitter inside the building or to a power storage for dissemination throughout the building in more conventional methods. If using the former then there will need to be grounding rods in easy reach of those inside. If the latter then the building can be treated as a rest stop, as organics will not have the above mentioned electrical build up in their bodies."


How do these look for the idea thus far?

 

[Gir Quee]

Electricity builds in organic bodies require grounding at intervals to avoid lethal electrocution

When you say grounding, do you mean discharging the excess built-up electricity? As I understand it, real life grounding is a constant, preventative action. Without going too deeply into electrical systems, grounding acts as a safety valve for when there suddenly is too much electrical current: the excess electricity is conducted into the earth(ground).

Metal that is directly in touch with a ground acts like an insulator

Can you give me an in-character example of this? Or is this the short version of the droids not being affected by the electrical build-up?

 

[Ultimatum]

When you say grounding, do you mean discharging the excess built-up electricity? As I understand it, real life grounding is a constant, preventative action. Without going too deeply into electrical systems, grounding acts as a safety valve for when there suddenly is too much electrical current: the excess electricity is conducted into the earth(ground).

I might misunderstand how ground function. My experience working with them is limited to when I work on my desktop, one the things you have to do to make sure you don't electrify any of the sensitve parts is to touch a ground piece of metal on the framework and that is supposed to take care of most of the static. I was working off of that for this portion. Is that how it works or have I been making a mistake?

Can you give me an in-character example of this? Or is this the short version of the droids not being affected by the electrical build-up?

It is both a short hand for droids not being affected and that buildings with metal construction will be mostly free of the effects. Should I adjust that to make more sense?

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

I might misunderstand how ground function. My experience working with them is limited to when I work on my desktop, one the things you have to do to make sure you don't electrify any of the sensitve parts is to touch a ground piece of metal on the framework and that is supposed to take care of most of the static. I was working off of that for this portion. Is that how it works or have I been making a mistake?

I think that's correct. We're talking about the same scientific principles, but different applications. With that particular example, as I understand it, the grounding there isn't so much to protect the person, but to protect the hardware from damage by static electricity discharge: there is some more information on that particular example here. I'm talking about the principle of grounding in the context of it affecting people. But I'm not an expert in this field, and I'm certain that there are many things that I don't know about it.

It is both a short hand for droids not being affected and that buildings with metal construction will be mostly free of the effects. Should I adjust that to make more sense?

I probably would. While not always true, so many metals are electrical conductors that when most people think of electrical conduction as being almost a class property of metals. And I think that's where the confusion comes into play for me, at least.

 

[Ultimatum]

I might be making another mistake in the understanding of this concept. So static electricity is potentially damaging to electronics as it builds up in the body. The idea I am taking is if that static were to build up to the point of simply grounding itself despite the insulation of skin and clothes, electrifying the person. Does it work that way?

I changed the weakness to:
Metal structures, droids, buildings, vehicles, etc that are connected to a ground will negate the effects of Life's Touch inside the enclosed space
That better?
[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

[member="Ultimatum"], science can be pretty complex, which is why we have professional scientists and paid researchers in the real life. Essentially, both organics and machines have limits on how they can handle different varieties of voltage. This is not an area where I'm expert myself, but I'll try.

I might be making another mistake in the understanding of this concept. So static electricity is potentially damaging to electronics as it builds up in the body. The idea I am taking is if that static were to build up to the point of simply grounding itself despite the insulation of skin and clothes, electrifying the person. Does it work that way?

Here is a pretty good article on the subject. The short version is that eventually, a person becomes so charged that eventually they can't be charged up with any more. The amount of electricity at this level typically isn't enough to seriously cause injury to someone, though it can potentially damage delicate electronics.

I changed the weakness to: Metal structures, droids, buildings, vehicles, etc that are connected to a ground will negate the effects of Life's Touch inside the enclosed space That better?

if that's what you want, but I think this really limits the use of the technology. Most of the things you have listed are really common, and what I think this could be used for.

If you're looking for a weakness, I would give this thing a set range and the possibility of this energy transfer being blocked by things (such as metal enclosures, big buildings, etc).

 

[Ultimatum]

Here is a pretty good article on the subject. The short version is that eventually, a person becomes so charged that eventually they can't be charged up with any more. The amount of electricity at this level typically isn't enough to seriously cause injury to someone, though it can potentially damage delicate electronics.

Okay then, what if the electricity that builds up in the person is centered on the nervous systems. As a person becomes more filled with this electricity the nervous system can begin misfiring, leading to twitches towards the beginning and seizures when there is a lot of electricity build up. Perhaps the Life's Touch receivers act similarly, not exactly the same, to human nerve cells and thus the nervous system begins to collect the energy.

if that's what you want, but I think this really limits the use of the technology. Most of the things you have listed are really common, and what I think this could be used for. If you're looking for a weakness, I would give this thing a set range and the possibility of this energy transfer being blocked by things (such as metal enclosures, big buildings, etc).

As expanded in one of the paragraphs later in the submission, the Life's Touch is not effective when on the outside of the building, but if one is put inside the building it will function within the building like normal. The idea being that you have a receiver on the outside of the building and then another emitter on the inside thus negating the effect. Or one could simply have a receiver on the outside the building attached to some form of building power storage and then have everything inside powered by wires connected to that.


Do these help?

 

[Gir Quee]

Okay then, what if the electricity that builds up in the person is centered on the nervous systems. As a person becomes more filled with this electricity the nervous system can begin misfiring, leading to twitches towards the beginning and seizures when there is a lot of electricity build up. Perhaps the Life's Touch receivers act similarly, not exactly the same, to human nerve cells and thus the nervous system begins to collect the energy.

Make this a long-term health effect if they're not wearing some sort of personal protection equipment (shielding garments, grounding devices, etc) and you'll be good on this portion. If this is something that is short-term, I see this potentially being weaponized, which wouldn't be so good.

As expanded in one of the paragraphs later in the submission, the Life's Touch is not effective when on the outside of the building, but if one is put inside the building it will function within the building like normal. The idea being that you have a receiver on the outside of the building and then another emitter on the inside thus negating the effect. Or one could simply have a receiver on the outside the building attached to some form of building power storage and then have everything inside powered by wires connected to that. Do these help?

That works for me.

 

[Ultimatum]

Alright here is the weaknesses' updated line:
"Electricity builds in organic bodies require grounding or protection to avoid long term health issues"

And here is the second to last paragraph as updated to include necessary information:
"An unexpected side effect of the system is that the energy field can have a potentially lethal negative effect on organics. While most artificial life will not be overly affected by the power, as any electricity that clings to them will simply travel straight to the ground, organics appear to naturally store some of the power in the nervous system. It builds up inside the axon regions of the cells. This electricity causes misfires in the nervous system which can manifest itself as twitches, personality disorders, and in more severe cases seizures. The electricity can easily be dealt so as to avoid the negative side effects, simply touching a ground or wearing insulators will remove or protect the organic respectively. The effect is not seen when the individual is exposed to the field for short intervals, however the longer that a person is exposed to the field the more severe the consequences. Fortunately, the worst side effects requires months of constant exposure before they will manifest. This phenomenon appears to be more distinct in areas where there is a small field and high energy output. To avoid large loss of life in highly populated areas, most cities are suggested to give their citizens protective clothing or maintain grounding rods in regular intervals so that organics may remove the electrical charge before it reaches critical levels."

Is that better?


[member="Gir Quee"]
Thank you again, this has been fun and enlightening.

 

[Gir Quee]

[member="Ultimatum"], I'm glad that you've enjoyed it. Learning new things and exploring people's concepts is one of the things that I really enjoy as a Factory Judge.

Remember that we don't strictly do hard science though. While I'm not sure if electricity would build up in people the way that you described, as a fictional possibility, I think something with pretty similar effects could happen depending on the radiation.

 

[Gir Quee]

Awesome. Pending Admin Approval. Thanks! [member="Spencer Varanin"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Awesome. Pending Admin Approval. Thanks! [member="Spencer Varanin"]

 

[Ellie Mors]

Approved.