11. Operating domains, paths, environments, and transitions
The domain is not merely ‘land, sea or air.’ It is the physical medium, support condition, infrastructure, environmental envelope, traffic context, mission boundary and legal operating area in which a capability and control regime are valid.
Concept & directionLNK
The domain is not merely ‘land, sea or air.’ It is the physical medium, support condition, infrastructure, environmental envelope, traffic context, mission boundary and legal operating area in which a capability and control regime are valid.
| Domain | Defining variables |
|---|---|
| Prepared solid surface | road, lane, runway, floor, deck, paved site, track surface |
| Unprepared terrain | soil, sand, rock, mud, vegetation, rubble, slope, dune and planetary regolith |
| Snow / ice | packed snow, powder, glacier, ice sheet, frozen waterway and groomed route |
| Rail / guideway | rail gauge, loading gauge, rack, monorail, magnetic guideway, slot, groove or automated guide |
| Cable / suspended path | aerial ropeway, funicular cable, elevator shaft, zipline or crane cable |
| Surface water | river, lake, harbor, canal, coastal and ocean; displacement, planing, foiling or cushion state |
| Submerged water | water column, depth/pressure, salinity, current, acoustic environment and navigation constraints |
| Seabed / benthic | bottom contact, sediment, slope, obstacles, tether and pressure |
| Atmosphere | airspace, altitude, density, wind, weather, icing, visibility, obstacle and traffic context |
| Ground effect / near surface | wing-in-ground, hover cushion, rotor downwash and terrain/water interaction |
| Near-space / high altitude | low density, radiation, thermal cycling, communications and recovery |
| Space / orbit | vacuum, gravity regime, orbit, radiation, thermal, debris, attitude and communications |
| Planetary surface | gravity, terrain, dust, atmosphere, illumination, temperature and communications delay |
| Subsurface void | mine, tunnel, cave, sewer, duct, building cavity and confined-space hazards |
| Pipe / borehole | diameter, bend radius, fluid, pressure, access, tether and inspection target |
| Soil / rock | burrowing, drilling and excavation with material mechanics and support requirements |
| On-body / wearable | human interface, biomechanics, fit, assistive load, safety and dignity boundary |
| Host-carried | inside/on another vehicle, launch/release/recovery envelope and service interfaces |
#Path and infrastructure constraint
- free-ranging; lane/road constrained; rail/guideway constrained; cable constrained; pipe/duct constrained; wall/ceiling attached; geofenced; orbital; convoy/formation constrained; carrier constrained
- record gauge, loading envelope, axle/load limits, clearance, berth/dock, runway/landing zone, charging/refueling, communications and navigation infrastructure compatibility
- distinguish physical capability, declared compatibility, observed access, owner permission and regulatory authorization
#Operating-envelope dimensions
| Envelope family | Representative limits |
|---|---|
| Geometry + surface | terrain class, roughness, slope, step, gap, depth, clearance, turning space, gauge, loading envelope |
| Atmosphere + weather | temperature, pressure, density, wind, precipitation, visibility, lightning, icing and contamination |
| Marine | depth, water density/salinity, current, wave/sea state, tide, ice, turbidity and seabed |
| Space / planetary | gravity, orbit, vacuum, radiation, dust, illumination, thermal cycle, debris and communication delay |
| Traffic + exposure | traffic classes/density, mixed human/machine interaction, population exposure and right-of-way rules |
| Infrastructure | map/beacon/GNSS quality, road/rail/waterway/airspace, charging/refueling, docking and control services |
| Configuration + load | mass, center of gravity, dimensions, payload, occupants, energy reserve, software and health |
| Mission + time | permitted actions, route/geofence, duration, schedule, season, daylight and authorization window |
| Fallback feasibility | safe stop/hold/anchor/land/surface/return/recover locations, communications and responder access |
#Transition record
Road-to-water, surface-to-submerged, land-to-air, atmosphere-to-space, host-carried-to-independent, docked-to-free, wheel-to-track and folded-to-deployed transitions are first-class operations. Record entry conditions, configuration/topology change, active support and propulsion paths, control handover, safety gates, intermediate state, outcome and evidence.