Robotics Overview

In modern times, there presently stand a plethora of complex automated machines intended to fulfill a vast variety of goals. Over the some five hundred years of history in computing and robotics, Humanity has refined it successfully into a science unlike any other. After reaching its pinnacle in the late 2300s, countless designs were simply lost to the test of time. Many of the most prominent robotics today owe their own image to those lost and now obsolete. This page revolves around the specific recurring designs and history of both synthetics and generalized robotics.

Synthetics

True automation to Humanity has many repeating faces and synthetics are no exception. Here are some examples of relevant designs, and their histories.

IPCs

The “IPC,” or Integrated Positronic Chassis came to fruition as a cheap and highly dexterous means of commercialized smart androids. Not bound by laws, IPCs operate in many ways independent of synthetic advancements and have many unique traits to separate them from more the more varied lawed designs.

More information on IPCs can be found here.

Bound Synthetics

Bound synthetics differ in shape, size and function drastically contrarily to the newly invented integrated positronic chassis. Being lawbound entails a much greater degree of trust placed in the synthetic’s operations, and thus they are granted vital roles across the board. Lower priced synthetics can often be seen as small, tiny maintenance robots while more expensive ones can reach larger, more intricate shapes and sizes and carry a vast assortment of responsibilities. Here are some examples of relevant designs, and their histories.

More information on general synthetics can be found here.

Goliath-type Earthmovers

Creation: 2364

A diagram of an immense Goliath-type excavation synthetic, used for heavy-duty landscaping and demolition work.

A technological marvel, the Goliath-Type “Earthmovers” are a long-lived series of mainly tripedal excavation robots meant to quickly displace hundreds of tons of material at a time. These twelve-meter tall powerhouses are mostly used for mining, landscaping and demolition duties and see extensive usage by planetside officials to carry out extraordinary works. Some of these Goliath-types have been converted into museum pieces in the dozens across the Alliance while the vast majority have ended up being scrapped. Several thousand of these occupy a portion of Mars’ “Metal Dunes,” discontinued due to their immense handling costs and simply tossed away because of the effort required to fully scrap them. Today they are sparsely seen in working order and remain relics of the past.

Automated Combine Refinery striders (A.C.R.)

Creation: 2299

It is easy to forget that with true automation comes the complete lack of need for Humanity in many once-essential lines of work. One of the most important of these, on Earth at least, would be the introduction of a synthetic workforce to assist in food production. Enter the Automated Combine Refinery units, affectionately referred to as the A.C.R. by its users. These are assemblies of several synthetics working wirelessly in unison to carry out the complete process of harvesting and refining crops in hydroponics fields. They are tall, thin but sturdy quadrupeds able to delicately and quickly control the growth and distribution of conflicting crops to various facilities without harming the yield whatsoever. Units like these are generally symbols of societal progression in any given circumstance, with simplistic and cheap versions spreading like wildfire in the Frontier worlds.

P.E.M.A.A. (Precision Electronic Medical Assistance Android)

Creation: 2401

Precision is a necessity in the operating room, and robots are quite precise. The usage of robots in surgical fields rose in the 2300’s when more exact and comprehensive ways of motion could be explored by continuously advancing servos and joint motors. One of the final designs of multi-purpose surgical robots was the P.E.M.A-A (Precision Electronic Medical Assistance Android), later becoming a frequent sight in hospitals across the Alliance. These units were known for their quirky personality modules, cited to assist with bedside manner more than anything else. They are effective at their true purpose - precision surgical assistance - to such a degree that no successor model has yet been made since.

Dumb/Simple Robotics

Simplistic robotic fields generally cover things like mechs, exosuits, RIGs and exoskeletons or any sort of powered, piloted mechatronic assistance. These are far from simplistic whatsoever, but the term was coined to match the level of intelligence of these assisted robotics in comparison to smarter synthetics.

Exosuits/RIGs

H.N.I.S. (Hazard Neutralization and Interdiction Hardsuit)

Creation: 2425

Designed to be a cheap alternative to much larger and more intricate mechs that populated the majority of NanoTrasen’s security forces, the H.N.I.S. was conceived in 2425. The suits were renowned for their ease of use and relatively straightforward interfaces permitting the most untrained security personnel to achieve military grades of protection with cutting edge resistance to any environment. Very quickly were these models discontinued due to rampant malfunctions and operational dangers, but the ones that exist to this day are frequently placed in heavy armories or secure areas for usage by NanoTrasen authorities when the time comes to eliminate really, really big hazards.

Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals “Rescue” Response Hardsuit

Creation: 2451

The latest in a long line of highly mobile and resistant medical response hardsuits, the “Rescue” suit is the vague name given to the most successful series of hardsuits produced by Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals. With a modest price tag and the incredible ability to carry hundreds of pounds lifesaving equipment on the move, these suits would go on to be found widespread throughout Human space. They would be used in excess in all possible environments, from underwater rescues to saving lives in hard vacuum.

Model 551 “Sheridan” Sol Military Hardsuit

Creation: 2441

The Sol Navy’s model of the M551 Military Hardsuit, manufactured by Necropolis Industries in 2441, is the child of decades of experience and knowledge. Following in the footsteps of many previous hardsuits utilized by the Sol Navy, especially the Sol Marines, this hardsuit has exceptional protection against nearly any form of damage. Renowned for its reliability, it is relatively rare for it to have weapons mounted to it, being considered “merely an additional failure point,” by the design competition that produced it. The Navalized version is modified especially for use in vacuums and space combat.

Mechs

“Durand” Area Control Mech

Creation: 2395

The Hephaestus designed ‘Durand’ model mechatronic vehicle was designed with mobile yet reliable defensive capability in mind. The unit occupies a strange, double-edged niche between that of maneuverable (though not necessarily quick) mechatronic units and dedicated fighting vehicles designed explicitly for durability and damage output. The Durand combines the advantages of each, creating a maneuverable yet heavily armored mechatronic capable of steadfast area control within nearly any confined area. The model was heavily utilized in both corporate security and military settings, seeing large success utilizing mass-driver systems to propel the unit long distances for unorthodox boarding strategies, and even becoming so successful as to evolve into more advanced units such as the feared Marauder. New defense systems and the mech’s long outdated systems have largely rendered these once revolutionary tactics unusable, yet some units still remain in operation by appropriately trained security forces, or are produced in mechatronics facilities where more complex models cannot be completed.

“Ripley” Automated Power Loader Unit

Creation: 2405

The APLU family of mechatronic workhorses has been a staple of Hephaestus’ control and expertise in the field of robotics for decades, with the ‘Ripley’ model being the strongest representative of this idea. Despite its age of over half a century, the Ripley remains in production thanks to a number of key features: simplicity, durability, and efficiency. The units are easily disassembled, repaired, and reassembled even without complex maintenance equipment, and oftentimes damages and malfunctions can even be repaired on the spot. In the same vein, the Ripley sports robust plating that protects against a majority of hazards that can threaten the unit and its operator during industrial work, and features a cleverly designed chassis that optimally protects both the occupant and critical internal systems even in the event that the plating fails. Anecdotes of mining or construction personnel becoming trapped by cave-ins or structural collapses, yet living to see rescue teams recover them thanks to the design of their mech, are rarely falsified.

Robotics History

Exosuit and RIG History

The rise of Human robotics in the late 21st century would lay the groundwork for much more than a definitive synthetic “workforce.” Entire fields would now owe their immense growth to the exploitation of smart mechatronics throughout the years, with technological marvels such as exosuits and mechanically assisted labor becoming a common sight in daily life. With this came the advent of the first true powered exoskeletons in 1992. These were tiny, form-fitting and focused on utility and usage in prolonged heavy lifting, with short battery life and many dangerous operational hazards. The usefulness of these powered tools was very apparent, and those involved quickly distributed and saw frequent updates to the utility and safety of their products. As time went on, the designs improved. Exoskeletons began to more closely resemble small vehicles in 1994, when the private military company Samuel’s Grey Feathers fielded the first true “exosuits” in Iran against Soviet troops. Known as the CES (Combat Exoskeleton Suits), they were initially produced in small numbers due to cost. Their fielding in combat set a new standard of warfare, with infantry now blurring the line between what is and is not an armored vehicle. From the CES, a myriad of new designs would form and it is seen as the precursor to the modern RIG.

One of these designs were the original heavy lifting industrial units of the early 2040’s, more akin to cars that operate as suits with the ability to effortlessly move several tons of whatever would fit in its clamps at a time. These were the precursors to the now widespread “APLU” units, and their function was much the same. Simple high-end moving work was all they were built for, and little has changed in their designs since. Another is what is known as the OMNI-SAAS, the omni-environment self-sealing automatic assistance suit. Designed in the early 2050’s, it was designed for absolute protection against the elements and compatibility with any environment on Earth. Its design was praised by explorers and the military alike for its incredibly robust nature, capable of wading effortlessly through extreme water pressure or standing on the very edge of a molten lava flow. More specialized exosuit designs would crop up in the years to follow, from pressurized firefighting suits to swift and effective medical exoskeletons.

In 2259, the now Zavodskoi Interstellar would find itself riding on the wave of success from the first true RIG - built for combat by their own hands. Expensive and unwieldy, these were hardly efficient in any way, however they set in stone a new standard for vacuum-proof exosuits. These were wholly retractable with a basic skeleton to every limb with a central control unit on the operator’s back capable of extending and sealing armor tightly over their body at will. These would allow for industrial-grade strength and durability with all the necessities one could possibly want from such a device, from integrated medical equipment, to leaping actuators or even high-caliber weaponry.

Mech History

In a related field was mechanized armor meeting an intimidating rise with the assistance of these developments. In 1997, Samuel’s Grey Feathers fielded the all-terrain bipedal tank known as the M5 Highlander armed with a prototype laser cannon. This was hugely expensive, but extremely mobile and capable of surpassing near any obstacle that a typical tank could not. With their introduction came an entirely new arms race - this time, for enormous mecha constructs. These would develop much slower than their exoskeleton counterparts, namely due to material and time constraints heavily limiting what could truly be done at the larger scales. Normal metals and composites could not stand the forces exerted by such immense units until 2180, where the first true combat mech labelled the “Skirmisher” was fielded in the thousands to supplement armored divisions of the young Sol Alliance.

The Skirmisher was an eight-meter tall bipedal battlemech wielding two large laser cannons on each arm and an immense ballistic rifle atop its right shoulder. Its unique digitigrade legs eased the majority of the stresses the lower body would experience in a full sprint, permitting its construction after the most recent advancements in material technology. It was loud, large, and incredibly heavy - permitting it to travel over most any terrain no matter the ambient condition. The development sent shockwaves once more throughout military strategy, with yet another powerful weapon able to see use in the field. Still, many issues remained with the Skirmisher’s design - its immense profile served to only limit it, as lower profile armored vehicles could easily land consistent and hard-hitting shots no matter where they make contact. As a result, the change in warfare posed by the Skirmisher would be a matter of pedantics, as the tracked armored vehicle would almost always be comparable and cheaper in a traditional conflict.

Much more compact examples would appear in the 2300’s, and with the rise of synthetics came the rise of even more advanced mechs. The iconic “Durand” would first be designed by Hephaestus Industries in 2395, followed shortly by the “Gygax” designs in 2405. These two designs became staples of how far exosuits had progressed, with incredibly accurate movements and automatic terrain adjustments to maintain high speeds for hours at a time under normal circumstances. They would be employed mainly by corporate security, with much larger mechs akin to the Skirmisher still seeing service in the militaries of the Orion Spur. Building off of these were designs like the Dominian “Warhorn” mech, another bipedal vehicle first encountered in 2457. Standing at 10 feet tall and capable of wielding abnormally large weaponry for its size, it rarely sees use outside of the most elite shock units like those of Task Unit Spear.