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be safely designed.
Some tinkers have attempted to use a ship's computer to override the CICD so as to produce quickly
varying gravitation fields in specific compartments. This is generally done as a deterrent to boarders. The
problem with this modification is that it requires overriding safety protocols. Unless care is taken to
restore all safety subroutines, failure of the safeties at a later time can cause unexpected malfunction of the
grav plates. The best defense against this kind of "grav pong" is to destroy the LCP. The gravity plates
themselves can also be rendered inoperative, but this typically requires damaging the decking above the
grav plates. Removing power from the compartment is also generally effective in smaller ships. Larger
ships are likely to have a separate distribution system for gravity control. Most also have local emergency
backup powercells installed to help maintain gravity even during a power outage.
Failure of the CICD or disconnection of the grav plate from the ship's control system results it the gravity
plate 'sticking' at its present setting. This can result in a residual gravity field at a high level or odd
orientation dependent upon acceleration conditions when the failure occurs.
Contragravity
Contragravity units produce 'lift'. Unlike a balloon a contragravity unit does not transmit its lift to the
vehicle structure through its supporting structure. A contragravity system will shield the vessel from the
effects of gravity by producing a field effect. In the absence of an artificial gravity field persons in the
vessel would feel the effects of the loss of gravity. In a vessel with full gravity compensation the passengers
and crew will notice no effect at all, since the artificial gravity field will insulate the interior of the vessel
from the effect to the natural gravity field.
Contragravity components must be as carefully designed into a craft as its reactionless drives. They cannot
generally be added later, without massive refitting of the vessel. Like the reactionless thrusters, the
contragravity unit is generally controlled from the bridge, by the pilot. On truly large ships both systems
are sometimes controlled from an auxiliary bridge during landing. Often this auxiliary bridge has a
sophisticated viewing system specially designed to give the pilot a 3 dimensional display of the exterior of
the ship to allow a better view of the landing area.
The unit itself consists of the Gravity Core, a chamber where the fields that counteract the effect of gravity
are centered. The Core is attached to the structure of the vessel. On large ships a number of cores are often
installed. A computer coordination system evens out the effects of the various cores allowing the pilot to
set trim on the units to smoothly control the lift of the vessel.
The contragravity system CCU both receives and transmits information to the CICD. The CCU also
receives input from the pilot's control console and sends the resulting control signals to the LCP attached