Communications Equipment

Communications Equipment is any equipment used to send or receive messages.

• Larger, more powerful devices serve as Ship Equipment.
• Please also see: Communication Technologies of Charted Space

Description (Specifications)

Commumications Equipment is generally available in three different qualities:

1. Civilian Quality Communications: sometimes referred to as "basic comms".
2. Paramilitary Quality Communications: sometimes referred to as "standard comms".
3. Military Quality Communications: sometimes referred to as "advanced comms".

Notes: The actual quantity and quality of sensors within the suite may vary from model to model, and between ship class, manufacturer's lot, or block. There may be other subtle distinguishments such as characteristic faults or "blind spots" in coverage.

Personal Communications

• Bug (Passive acoustic sensor, Active transmitter)
  • Bug Monitor (base station, Active transmitter)
• Commcomp (optimized package, Active transmitter)
• Commdots (Active transmitter)
• Communicator (Active transmitter)
• Data Headpiece (Ancillary item, data enhancement)
• Emergency Beacon (Active transmitter)
• Language Translator (data enhancement)
• Multiplexer (Ancillary item, data management)
• Pseudo-Reality Communication (Active transmitter)
• Radio Communicator (Passive receiver, Active transmitter)
• Spray Display (Ancillary item, data enhancement)

Shipboard Communications

Ships and vehicles are generally equipped with one or more communications devices.

• Antenna, dishes and aerials (transmitters and receivers).

A concentration of such equipment may be referred to as an "antenna farm".

• Radio Communicator (broadcast communications)
  • Radio Direction Finder (Passive Sensor)
  • Radio Jammer (Active ECM)
• Laser Communicator (tight beam communications)
  • Laser / Light detectors (Passive Sensor)
• Maser Communicator (tight beam communications)
• Meson Communicator (tight beam communications)
  • Meson Screen (Countermeasure, Screen)

Signal Delay

Communications Equipment is limited by realspace physics. The broadcast or beam that a communications device produces takes time to reach its target.

• A broadcast or beam travels at approximately 300,000 km per second. For example, a communicator attempting to send a signal to a target at a distance of 12 million km will have a signal delay of 40 seconds (40 seconds for the electromagnetic transmission to reach the target).

Other Factors

• Encryption
• Passive (receiving), or Active (broadcasting).
• Relay satellites
• Tight beam communications

Computer Control Standards

Computer Controls: In almost all cases where the ship's computer can control a given ship function (gravity, doors, etc.), orders fed in at the central bridge computer take precedence over those fed in at local controls. Only if the computer is inoperative will a computer override be ineffective. Some ships have been known to be built with a different system set-up, but this arrangement is commonplace on most vessels within Charted Space.

History & Background (Dossier)

Lower technology communications TL:1-3

• Signalling and semaphore

At TL:4-6, the following systems tend to become widespread in many sophont societies as electricity and the earliest solid state electronics come into use.

• Telegraph systems
• Telephone networks

Holy Grail of Communications Technology

Advanced technology

• Ansible

References & Contributors (Sources)

This article is missing content for one or more detailed sections. Additional details are required to complete the article. You can help the Traveller Wiki by expanding it.

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Mongoose Publishing or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• Marc Miller. Referee's Manual (Game Designers Workshop, 1987), 67.
• Traveller Wiki Editorial Team
• Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science