Tech Talk: Behind The Silver Ninja (Future Tech)

Tech Talk: Behind The Silver Ninja (Future Tech)

Hello ladies and gentlemen, this week I want to talk about some of the technology that is featured in my science fiction superheroine book, The Silver Ninja. In this particular entry, I am going to discuss my technology ideas originated from and what science I used to make it plausible.

(Please note that not all tech has been introduced in The Silver Ninja Vol.1, some will be making an appearance in The Silver Ninja Vol. 2.

In the beginning of the book, Jonas walks past numerous creations being developed at his company Lucent Labs. There are concepts for a H.U.D. (Heads Up Display) assisted car, which warns you of pedestrians not in your line of sight and guides you to your destination via magenta colored paths that appear on the road in front of you. As he continued down the corridor, he walks past another invention that re-imagines the freight trailers normally attached to semi trucks. In the book, the trailers fold downward in order to reduce it’s height while not crushing the objects tucked within. This is to make the trailer less prone to tipping over, but of course… the technology doesn’t quite work right when Jonas does his impromptu inspection.

So let’s talk about how these concepts came to light and how you can come up with future concepts yourself.

For me, one of the most interesting things in Science Fiction, is seeing how the technology improves our lives. Star Trek is a perfect example of this, who wouldn’t kill to own a holo deck and live every fantasy you’ve ever dreamed of? Or a replicator that could gift you an unlimited bounty of food? With that kept in mind, I observed the world around me and thought about what sorts of inventions would dramatically improve the quality of life.

  • The Heads Up Display for civilian vehicles

This was one of my favorite concepts to come up with, even though it’s not entirely original. A few years back, I remember car manufacturers discussing the possibility of putting a HUD inside of their vehicles, but it’s not something that quite took off, at least… not yet. With this idea, I drew my inspiration from driving in New Jersey, Philadelphia, and other places I was not familiar with. Wouldn’t it be cool, if the road would just… light up? That all a person would have to do is follow the glowing road to their destination like a GPS?

Hence the beginning of the HUD concept for automobiles, just follow the magenta road to your next destination. The sensors that would be attached to the bumper and skirts of the car would be used to scan the area like a radar system and provide real-time data for the HUD. In addition, a sonar gadget would be used to detect the presence of pedestrians who may be attempting to jaywalk while behind a moving van or large truck. A device like this could dramatically reduce the amount of accidents and keep drivers eyes on the road. Of course, an invention like this would increase the cost of automobile repairs and will force mechanics to become a bit tech savy than what is required of them now. Being able to maintain or replace sensors would be an extra and possibly very costly step that would be added on to the mechanic’s bill.

Sadly, this concept might never take off due to Google’s development of a “smart car.” The smart car will essentially drive a person to any destination they desire. Without a user actually controlling the car, steering, and navigating, the concept of the HUD immediately becomes obsolete. However, there may still be use for it in Law Enforcement, Health Services, and Fire Safety.

  • The collapsible freight trailer for semi-trucks.

This idea came to me when I first started driving my father’s SUV. I noticed that when cars and trucks would pass me at a high rate of speed, the SUV would have a tendency to wobble like a bending tree in a hurricane. To me, this didn’t feel very safe, combined with the fact that SUV’s had a tendency to flip over, it got me wondering about the causes of semi truck roll overs.

Semi-Trucks and SUV’s have the highest chance of rolling over because of their high center of gravity. How could you address that problem? What could make a vehicle less prone to tipping over? That’s when I got the idea of the collapsible trailer. If the center of gravity on the vehicle were reduced, it would be possible to severely limit the vehicle’s ability to flip onto its side. Notice I say limit, I didn’t say it was perfect. After all, even a tiny little compact car could still tumble over but at a much lower percentage. If trucks were lower to the ground, it’s feasible to think that jack knifing tractor trailers would become much less common.

Although this new trailer would be ideal for solid, sturdy goods, this would not be a good set up for things like wedding cakes and goods that are susceptible to being squashed or sloshed around. There is also a theoretical use of stacking a 2nd trailer on top of the folded down trailer for more cargo, however this would re-introduce the jack knife problem while doubling or even tripling cargo capacity. So you may be wondering, why am I introducing potential flaws to my science fiction technology? My answer is very simple, I just want to make it believable that something like this could exist in our world a mere 10 years from now. I find the imperfections in technology just as fascinating as the perfections.

My personal goal is to incorporate more of this technology in future installments of The Silver Ninja series of books. The readers will start to see a gradual shift in the world, where future technology finally starts turning into reality. Oh and of course Cindy, The Silver Ninja being an awesome, flawed, but heroic bad ass that saves the world as well.

Speaking of The Silver Ninja, the next entry will talk about probably the most fascinating piece of technology I came up with…

S.I.R.C.A. [Stealth, Infiltration, Reconnaissance, Combat, Armor] also known as, The Silver Ninja’s suit.

Thank you for reading.

Wilmar Luna

Wilmar Luna

Couldn't be a superhero in real life so he decided to write his own. When he's not creating empowered female characters he can be found watching films, reading books, and playing lots of video games. Buy his books here: https://www.thesilverninja.com/purchase/