Emergency Longitude Slide Ruler for Horizon-Obstructed Navigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional navigational methods, such as celestial navigation, require extensive training and rely on the horizon for measurements, making them inaccurate and complex, especially in emergency situations where electronic devices fail or horizon visibility is obstructed.
Innovation Solution
The Emergency Longitude Slide Ruler uses the circumpolar region of the sky to determine longitude without needing horizon references, allowing users to identify their position using any visible star in the circumpolar region, eliminating the need for extensive education or electronic equipment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If standard celestial navigation is used, then navigation accuracy can be achieved, but extensive training and complex procedures are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a simplified copy of the celestial navigation system by pre-calculating and printing star positions for specific times and dates on a slide ruler. Instead of requiring users to perform complex calculations and look up data in almanacs, the device provides pre-computed reference positions that can be directly compared with observed star positions, dramatically reducing training requirements while maintaining navigation accuracy
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-calculating star positions for various times and dates before the actual navigation task. The slide ruler contains pre-computed data showing where stars should appear at specific times, allowing navigators to simply compare observed positions with pre-calculated positions without performing complex real-time calculations
2Measurement precision
If celestial navigation using the horizon is used, then position can be determined, but accuracy deteriorates when horizon visibility is obstructed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the dependency on the horizon by developing a navigation method that uses angular relationships between stars themselves rather than measuring star positions relative to the horizon. The slide ruler provides pre-calculated angular positions of stars relative to each other, allowing navigation to proceed even when the horizon is completely obscured by clouds, land, or other obstructions
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces star angular relationships as an intermediary reference system. Instead of using the horizon as the primary reference (which can be obscured), the method uses the fixed angular relationships between visible stars in the circumpolar region as the reference frame, with the slide ruler providing pre-calculated intermediary data for comparison
3Productivity
If electronic navigation equipment is used, then navigation speed and accuracy are improved, but reliability decreases when electrical systems fail
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the operational parameters of navigation from electronic/digital to mechanical/analog. The slide ruler is a purely mechanical device with no electronic components, batteries, or digital displays, making it immune to electrical failures, electromagnetic interference, and cyber attacks while providing sufficiently accurate and rapid navigation for emergency situations
Data Source
AI summary
A system of navigation employing an emergency longitude slide ruler for stellar navigation is described. The emergency longitude slide ruler is equipped with several wheels having rulers with settings including of the longitude slide ruler of the present invention include year, date, hour, minutes, star angle measurement degree wheel, a longitude wheel, a circumpolar star field identifier wheel, star meridian transit angles wheel, and a time zone wheel. All wheels are of diminishing diameters and are laid on top of each other in descending circumference with minute gradations allowing each consecutive wheel to line up with its larger adjacent wheel according to proper settings to eventually indicate longitude. The system presents an efficient and expedient means by which an individual with very limited knowledge of navigation and celestial bodies can determine his or her location, including longitude.