219: Chapter 219 The White Emperor's bones must first harden!

Countdown to the arrival of the sentry ship, day 67.

Pangu Laboratory, Level B2, afternoon.

Academician Zhang Weide dismantled the cross-sectional view of the White Emperor's cockpit section into three layers.

The outermost layer is the load-bearing stealth skin shell, the middle layer is the honeycomb vibration-damping sandwich, and the innermost layer is the pilot's protective cockpit.

The three layers are nested, mutually supporting, yet relatively independent.

He ran a set of stress simulations for the White Emperor's full-envelope high-G maneuvers on the supercomputing terminal.

"Chief Engineer Su, the problem with the rear seat is more complex than I estimated."

Su Che walked over.

Academician Zhang Weide pushed the simulation results to the public large screen.

The stress distribution of the cockpit under sustained 12G turns for the White Emperor was marked in different colors for the front and rear seats.

The peak stress in the front seat was concentrated in the lumbar spine, with values within the safety margin.

The peak stress in the rear seat was not in the lumbar spine, but in the cervical spine.

"In the tandem layout, the rear seat is forty centimeters higher than the front seat, with a higher center of gravity. At 12G, the lateral load borne by the head and cervical spine of the rear-seat weapon officer is twenty-two percent greater than that of the front seat."

"The height difference in the rear seat of a standard fighter jet is only a dozen centimeters. The White Emperor is pushed to forty because the rear seat requires a wider field of view and projection space for the swarm command interface."

Su Che glanced at that twenty-two percent figure.

"The buffer stroke cannot solve the problem of the cervical spine; seat buffering is longitudinal, and the cervical spine's lateral load cannot be absorbed by the buffer stroke."

Academician Zhang Weide nodded, "The helmet."

"What do you mean?"

"Integrate a cervical spine support structure into the Brain-Computer Interface helmet. Make the helmet lining a fully wrapped inflatable airbag. When a high-G maneuver is triggered, the airbag pressurizes, locking the head and cervical spine in a fixed posture, and the lateral load is entirely dispersed onto the restraint straps on the shoulders and chest."

Su Che went through the mechanical logic of this plan in his mind.

"Airbag pressurization response time."

"Pre-pressurized type; it maintains a certain base pressure in the normal state and pressurizes to the working value when high-G is triggered. The response time is within fifty milliseconds."

"Does it interfere with the Brain-Computer Interface's flexible electrodes?"

Academician Zhang Weide paused.

He turned and glanced at the Brain-Computer Interface technical document in front of Su Che.

"The electrodes are attached to the forehead and temporal region, while the airbag is on the top of the head and the occipital region; the physical locations do not overlap."

"But when the airbag pressurizes, it generates uniform surface pressure. The surface pressure conducted to the electrode contact surface might affect the contact impedance between the electrodes and the scalp."

Su Che picked up his handheld device and dialed Academician Chen Shian's number.

"Academician Chen Shian, we need to add airbag cervical spine protection to the White Emperor's cockpit helmet. The airbag surface pressure is about 0.3 to 0.5 atmospheres. Does it affect the contact impedance of the Brain-Computer Interface electrodes? Please run a set of tests on your end."

On the other end of the line, "0.5 atmospheres is equivalent to pressing your forehead evenly with your palm. I will have Xiao Yuan provide the data this afternoon."

He hung up.

Academician Zhang Weide returned to the supercomputing terminal and began to build the 3D model of the helmet.

Beside him, Zhao Mingyuan had already drawn the first version of the hardware hot-backup architecture for dual-mode switching.

Two sets of flight control channels coexist on the same bus board, one activated and one on standby.

In manned mode, the Brain-Computer Interface signal travels through the main channel, and the main god ai travels through the backup channel, listening in real-time but not intervening.

When the pilot pulls the ejection handle, the physical contact breaks the Brain-Computer Interface signal line of the main channel, and the other half of the same contact closes the backup channel; the main god ai takes over instantly.

"Level inversion, a purely physical action, without going through any software logic."

Zhao Mingyuan threw the circuit diagram onto the right side of the public large screen.

"But there is a problem. Ejection is not the only switching scenario. What if the pilot doesn't eject but just actively switches to unmanned mode? For example, if he wants to take his hands off the controls and let the AI fly for a while, focusing on commanding the swarm."

Su Che turned from Academician Zhang Weide's side.

"Active switching should also go through hardware. Make a physical toggle switch on the control stick; toggling it up is manned mode, and toggling it down is unmanned mode. The toggle switch connects directly to the channel selector on the bus board."

Zhao Mingyuan tilted his head and thought about it.

"Add an anti-accidental-touch lock to the toggle switch to prevent mis-toggling due to hand tremors during high-G maneuvers. If it suddenly switches from manned to unmanned on the battlefield, and the pilot thinks he is still flying while the AI has actually taken over, that would be a disaster."

"Add it! Use a spring return with damping, set the toggle force to more than twice the normal operating force, and reduce the probability of accidental touch to zero."

Zhao Mingyuan added the annotation for the locking mechanism to the circuit diagram.

Zhou Dehai sent a message from the communication area, posted on the internal encrypted channel.

"The output list for the two Zhulong units has been updated today. The last batch of mass-produced components for the Xuan Nu is more than half finished, and the production scheduling plan for the first batch of trial components for the White Emperor is waiting for Su Che to finalize the drawings."

Su Che glanced at the message but did not reply immediately.

The White Emperor's overall drawings were still being refined in parallel across various lines, and the structural finalization would take at least another two or three days.

...

Countdown to the arrival of the sentry ship, day 66.

Level B2, morning.

Xiao Yuan sent over the test report from Academician Chen Shian's side regarding the impact of airbag surface pressure on the Brain-Computer Interface electrodes.

Conclusion: Under a uniform surface pressure of 0.5 atmospheres, the contact impedance of the graphene oxide electrodes increased by eight percent.

An eight percent increase in impedance would cause the acquisition amplitude of neural signals to attenuate by about six percent.

Su Che showed the numbers to Academician Zhang Weide.

"Six percent is within the gain compensation range of the noise reduction algorithm and will not affect decoding accuracy."

Academician Zhang Weide rotated the 3D model of the helmet.

"So the airbag plan is finalized?"

"Finalized."

Academician Zhang Weide finalized the model version and packaged it to send to Wen Bo.

"Wen Bo, you choose the helmet shell material. It must be light, hard, impact-resistant, and not conflict with the stealth skin."

Wen Bo came in from the corner of the corridor; he wasn't carrying the vernier caliper in his work uniform pocket, having replaced it with a roll of measuring tape.

"Carbon fiber composite shell with Kevlar lining, standard aviation helmet structure. The weight is controlled within 1.8 kilograms. Adding the airbag and Brain-Computer Interface, the whole set does not exceed 2.5 kilograms."

"2.5 kilograms on the head while performing 12G maneuvers." Academician Li Zhengyang popped up from the weapon adaptation area, "The pilot's neck needs to be thick enough."

"Once the airbag locks it, it's not the neck bearing the weight." Academician Zhang Weide did not turn his head.

Wen Bo measured the inner diameter of the helmet model, noted it on the back of the measuring tape, and left.

Afternoon.

Academician Sun Qiwen came out from the U-shaped array area with a power consumption table.

"Chief Engineer Su, I have calculated the first version of the White Emperor's overall power consumption table."

He slapped the table onto the countertop in front of Su Che.

"Engine, flight control, weapons, radar, communication, shield, Brain-Computer Interface, cockpit life support, cockpit temperature control—nine major power-consuming units."

Su Che glanced at the total.

"Forty-seven percent more than the Xuan Nu."

"The extra consumption is all in the cockpit. The metabolic heat of two people plus two sets of Brain-Computer Interfaces plus the cockpit sealed environmental control—cooling alone will consume six kilowatts. The Xuan Nu doesn't need to look after people, but the White Emperor has to support them."

"Is the output margin of the high-order fusion reactor sufficient?"

"Yes, but the White Emperor's fusion reactor is two sizes larger than the Xuan Nu's, and the overall weight increases by 1.5 tons."

Academician Zhang Weide heard this from the supercomputing terminal.

"1.5 tons, plus the cockpit weight gain, helmet weight gain, and life support weight gain, the total weight of the aircraft is over three tons heavier than the Xuan Nu, and the thrust-to-weight ratio drops by eleven percent."

Su Che noted down the thrust-to-weight ratio figure.

"The eleven percent loss in thrust-to-weight ratio will be compensated for by the engine's improved control module; there is still room to adjust the parameters for a five-fold increase in thrust per engine."

Academician Sun Qiwen took back the power consumption table.

"I have proposed two schemes for the cooling circuit: one is to share fins with the main body cooling, and the other is an independent cockpit circuit running through the fuselage belly."

He paused, "The main cooling shared fins save space and weight, but the cockpit cooling and weapon cooling will be coupled; when the weapons fire, the cockpit temperature will rise accordingly."

"Use the independent circuit through the fuselage belly." Su Che did not hesitate, "The pilots cannot be roasted in the cockpit."

"The independent circuit adds 700 grams of pipeline weight."

"Add it."

Evening.

Academician Qian Zhenhua finished aligning all of the White Emperor's communication and navigation interfaces at the east workstation.

Quantum Communication terminal, space-based quantum star map navigation data interface, swarm command distribution channel, and luan bird central control shared data channel.

He spent the whole day writing down the frequency allocation, bandwidth reservation, and encryption levels for the four communication lines by himself.

After finishing, he closed the draft notebook, placed it on the workstation, and disappeared.

Zhao Mingyuan turned over on the folding bed in the corner and discovered that the light at Academician Qian Zhenhua's workstation was off, the draft notebook was open, and there was half a cup of cold water beside it.

"Did Academician Qian Zhenhua go back to the dormitory or go upstairs to eat?"

No one answered.

Zhao Mingyuan pulled the quilt over his head and continued to sleep.

...

Countdown to the arrival of the sentry ship, day 64.

Level B2, morning.

Among the seven lines, the four lines of structure, flight control, thermal management, and communication/navigation had each completed their first round of refinement.

The remaining three lines converged today.

Early in the morning, Wen Bo submitted the adaptation plan for the White Emperor's stealth airframe materials.

The White Emperor's airframe is one-third larger than the Xuan Nu's, the area of the stealth skin has increased accordingly, and the layout plan for the Full-band Metamaterial Stealth Structure (Ultimate Evolution Version) needs to be rearranged.

"The edge treatment of the nose and air intake is different from the Xuan Nu."

He spread the plan drawings on the test bench, with the measuring tape lying across the right side of the drawings.

"The White Emperor has a cockpit canopy; the curved surface of the canopy conflicts with the stealth aerodynamic shape. When opening, the canopy flips up and will form a large-angle reflecting surface."

Su Che walked to the test bench.

"The cockpit canopy will not open in combat conditions."

"It will during an emergency ejection. Ejection involves jettisoning the canopy before ignition. At the moment of jettisoning, the canopy leaves the airframe but hasn't flown far away. If an enemy radar is illuminating it at this time, that large-angle reflecting surface will expose the White Emperor's position."

"Ejection itself already implies giving up stealth."

"There is a 0.4-second interval between jettisoning the canopy and the pilot leaving the aircraft. During these 0.4 seconds, the White Emperor is still flying. If the unmanned mode takes over to continue combat, stealth still has significance."

Su Che stared at the plan drawing and thought for two seconds.

"Apply the stealth coating to the inner surface of the cockpit canopy as well. After jettisoning, the canopy itself will be a piece of stealth debris and will not produce extra reflections."

Wen Bo put the measuring tape away and tucked it into his waist.

"Increasing the coating area by 0.8 square meters will increase the weight by 200 grams."

"Add it."

Academician Li Zhengyang spoke up at this moment.

"Have you decided on the weapon bay position for the White Emperor's weapon mounting reserved interfaces?"

Su Che adjusted the overall cross-sectional view to the public large screen.

"Built-in weapon bays in the fuselage belly, one on the left and one on the right, similar to the Xuan Nu but with larger dimensions. The bay door opening method is changed to a rotating type, with the opening and closing time compressed to 0.2 seconds, reducing the stealth exposure window."

Academician Li Zhengyang walked to the large screen and looked at the position of the weapon bays and the relative relationship between the front and rear seats.

"Directly below the rear seat is the top of the left weapon bay. The mechanical vibration from the weapon bay opening will be conducted through the structure to the rear seat. When the weapon officer is commanding the swarm, the seat underneath will keep vibrating, which will affect the Brain-Computer Interface's collected signals."

Su Che turned to Academician Zhang Weide.

Academician Zhang Weide had already opened a new simulation window on the supercomputing terminal.

"Add a layer of damping vibration-isolation pad between the rear seat and the weapon bay, sharing the installation point with the seat buffer system, without adding extra structural complexity."

"Is the vibration attenuation sufficient?"

"Let's run a set and see."

Academician Zhang Weide imported the mechanical vibration spectrum of the weapon bay opening into the simulation model, superimposed the damping parameters of the vibration-isolation pad, and ran it for ten minutes.

The results came out.

The vibration conduction attenuation was ninety-one percent.

"Ninety-one is enough." Su Che noted down the number, "Is the remaining nine percent enough to affect the Brain-Computer Interface acquisition?"

He picked up his handheld device and sent a message to Xiao Yuan.

The reply came quickly.

"The impact of the residual vibration at this frequency band on the electrode contact impedance is less than 0.3 percent, which is negligible."

Su Che put down the handheld device.

The weapon bay position was finalized, the vibration isolation plan was finalized, the cockpit canopy stealth plan was finalized, and the helmet plan was finalized.

He returned to the main console and summarized the progress of all lines into the main framework of the overall drawings.

The structural skeleton was more than half completed.

The dual-channel hot backup of the flight control bus was finalized.

The communication and navigation interfaces were all aligned.

Thermal management used an independent circuit.

The stealth skin layout was in the finishing stage.

Weapon mounting only had interface reservations made, and the specific weapon systems had not yet started.

Liu Huaqiang walked out of the communication area and flipped to the White Emperor page in his notebook.

The page listed the progress annotations for the seven lines, with checkmarks, horizontal lines, and blank spaces.

"Su Che, the White Emperor's skeletal framework is almost built."

Su Che switched the overall drawings to panoramic mode and rotated them on the public large screen.

The outline of the White Emperor was fully presented from the nose to the tail, the bulge of the two-seat cockpit was embedded in the streamlined back of the aircraft, and the rotating doors of the fuselage belly weapon bays were hidden under the stealth skin.

It was larger than the Xuan Nu, heavier than the Xuan Nu, but the lines were fiercer.

Su Che turned off the panoramic mode.

"The bones are built; next, it's time to install the teeth."