4. Universal movement physics
A vehicle may have several active paths in each graph and may switch paths during an operation.
Concept & directionLNK
A vehicle may have several active paths in each graph and may switch paths during an operation.
Required separation
Support explains how loads are carried. Propulsion explains how commanded force or impulse changes motion. Action explains what useful work is performed. A blimp’s helium supports it; electric propellers move it; a camera payload performs the mission.#4.1 Support, lift, and load-bearing mechanisms
| Support family | Realizations | Differentiating domain |
|---|---|---|
| Rigid contact | Wheels, rollers, balls, casters, skids, skis, shoes, contact pads | Solid ground, deck, wall, ice, snow |
| Compliant contact | Tires, suspension, compliant feet, soft tracks, airless structures | Controls load distribution and terrain following |
| Continuous contact | Tracks, belts, screws/augers, rolling drums | Low ground pressure, loose media, climbing or crawling |
| Intermittent contact | Legs, hopping, running, brachiation, inchworm, snake-like segments | Discrete contacts and gait phases |
| Guided contact | Rail wheels, flanges, guide rollers, rack, slot, groove, pipeline contact | Infrastructure constrains path |
| Field support | Magnetic levitation, electromagnetic suspension/repulsion | Guideway and controlled fields carry load |
| Air cushion | Hovercraft skirt, surface-effect cushion, air bearing | Pressure cushion over land, water or prepared surface |
| Hydrostatic | Displacement hull, pontoon, submerged buoyancy, ballast system | Buoyant force from displaced fluid |
| Hydrodynamic | Planing hull, hydrofoil, lifting body, dynamic diving plane | Forward motion creates lift or support |
| Aerodynamic | Fixed wing, rotor, flapping wing, parafoil, kite, lifting body | Airflow creates lift |
| Aerostatic | Helium/hydrogen gas cell, hot-air envelope | Lighter-than-air buoyancy |
| Ballistic / orbital | Free flight, ballistic arc, orbit, free-fall | No continuous support interface in the usual sense |
| Tethered / suspended | Cable car, gondola, crane-suspended carrier, tethered balloon | Cable or structure carries some or all load |
| Externally carried | Vehicle on trailer, aircraft carrier, mothership, launch rail | Carrier bears load during a phase |
| Mixed / transitioning | Amphibian, seaplane, roadable aircraft, launch-and-recovery craft | Multiple methods with transition conditions |
#4.2 Resource, energy, and feed taxonomy
| Resource family | Examples and modeling notes |
|---|---|
| Human / animal biochemical | Muscle input via pedals, oars, push, pull, walking or direct carriage |
| Stored electrical | Primary/rechargeable battery, supercapacitor, flywheel-generator combination |
| External electrical | Overhead wire, third rail, tether, conductive rail, inductive supply, charging while stationary |
| Electrochemical generation | Fuel cell supplied by hydrogen, methanol, ammonia or another reactant system |
| Liquid chemical | Gasoline, diesel, kerosene, alcohol, biofuel, nitromethane blend, monopropellant |
| Gaseous chemical | Hydrogen, methane/CNG/LNG, LPG, stored producer gas |
| Solid / hybrid chemical | Solid rocket propellant, hybrid fuel grain plus oxidizer, solid fuel combustion |
| Oxidizer | Atmospheric oxygen, liquid oxygen, nitrous oxide, peroxide or other stored oxidizer |
| Stored mechanical | Spring, elastic band, compressed gas, hydraulic accumulator, flywheel, raised mass |
| Solar / radiant | Photovoltaic electricity, solar thermal, solar sail radiation pressure |
| Wind / current / wave | Sail, kite, turbine, current drag, wave-energy conversion |
| Gravity / altitude | Downhill motion, gliding, pendular or counterweight system |
| Nuclear / radioisotope | Reactor-derived power, radioisotope heat/electricity |
| External mechanical | Tow, push, launch, catapult, winch, cable haul, carrier release |
| Ambient thermal / pressure | Thermal gradients, buoyancy changes, atmospheric or fluid pressure differentials |
#4.3 Conversion, transmission, and force generation
| Stage | Controlled vocabulary seed |
|---|---|
| Converter | electric motor; combustion engine; steam engine; gas/steam turbine; fuel cell; hydraulic/pneumatic motor; muscle; sail/wing; thermal engine; reactor-generator |
| Power conditioning | inverter; ESC; rectifier; regulator; converter; clutch; torque converter; governor; valve; pump; compressor |
| Transmission | direct drive; shaft; chain; belt; gear train; differential; CVT; hydrostatic; hydraulic line; pneumatic line; electrical bus; distributed drive |
| Force generator | traction torque; propulsive thrust; aerodynamic lift; drawbar pull; cable tension; jet momentum; impulse; magnetic force; buoyancy modulation |
| Movement interface | wheel; track; leg/foot; ski/skid; rail wheel; screw/auger; propeller; fan; rotor; sail; oar/paddle; waterjet; nozzle; tether; field |
| Reaction medium | ground; rail; snow/ice; air; water; expelled working mass; cable/structure; magnetic guideway; radiation field; another vehicle |
#4.4 Propulsor and locomotion families
| Family | Examples | Physical discriminator |
|---|---|---|
| Rolling traction | Driven wheel, roller, sphere, drum | Torque reacts through solid contact |
| Continuous traction | Track, belt, screw/auger | Extended contact or loose-media reaction |
| Legged / body | Walk, run, hop, crawl, slither, inchworm, climb, brachiate, burrow | Gaits and contact sequence matter |
| Air propeller / open fan | Tractor/pusher propeller, open fan, ducted fan | Thrust reacts against air regardless of support medium |
| Marine propeller | Submerged, surface-piercing, contra-rotating, azimuthing | Thrust reacts against water |
| Pump / water jet | Impeller, waterjet, pump-jet | Water ingested and accelerated through duct/nozzle |
| Paddle / oar / fin | Paddlewheel, oar, paddle, oscillating fin, fluke | Cyclic or reciprocating reaction against water |
| Sail / kite | Aerodynamic sail, rigid wing sail, kite | Ambient wind produces force transmitted to body |
| Rotorcraft | Main rotor, multirotor, coaxial, tandem, intermeshing, cyclorotor | Rotating lifting system produces lift and/or thrust |
| Fixed/flapping wing | Powered fixed wing, ornithopter, flapping foil | Aerodynamic surfaces create lift/thrust with forward or cyclic motion |
| Breathing jet | Turbojet, turbofan, ramjet, pulsejet | Air is ingested; exhaust momentum creates thrust |
| Rocket | Solid, liquid, hybrid, cold-gas, monopropellant | Onboard working mass enables operation without atmospheric intake |
| Electric/plasma space | Ion, Hall, electrospray, plasma, electrothermal | Electrically accelerated working mass |
| Propellantless space | Solar sail, electric sail, magnetic/electrodynamic tether | External field or radiation interaction |
| Cable / tow / launch | Winch, funicular cable, towline, catapult, rail launch | Force supplied through external linkage or impulse |
| Magnetic linear | Linear motor, maglev propulsion | Electromagnetic force along guideway |
| Buoyancy modulation | Underwater glider, variable-buoyancy vehicle, balloon altitude cycling | Vertical force and environment generate horizontal progress |
| Mixed / redundant | Wheel plus propeller; sail plus engine; rotor plus wing; battery plus combustion | Multiple paths may be concurrent, alternate or emergency-only |
#4.5 Steering, stopping, holding, and stability
| Function | Mechanisms |
|---|---|
| Directional control | Steered wheel/axle; skid steer; differential thrust; rudder; canard; thrust vector; sail trim; articulated body; body lean; control surface; variable geometry |
| Attitude / trim | Elevator/aileron/rudder; cyclic/collective; ballast/trim tanks; reaction wheel; control moment gyro; magnetorquer; movable mass; aerodynamic tabs |
| Speed reduction | Friction brake; regenerative brake; engine/compression brake; aerodynamic drag device; reverse thrust; propeller reversal; drogue; water brake |
| Stop / hold | Parking brake; pawl; chock; anchor; mooring; station keeping; hover; dynamic positioning; magnetic hold; geostationary/orbital station keeping |
| Stability | Passive geometry; suspension; keel; dihedral; fins; gyroscopic stabilization; electronic stability control; active suspension; flight controller |
| Emergency | Kill switch; emergency stop; dead-man control; failsafe neutral; parachute; autorotation; ditching; escape; safe-state shutdown; deorbit/reentry plan |
#4.6 Differentiating examples required by the substrate
| Recipe | Support | Propulsion path | Control | Decisive distinction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electric scooter | Ground / wheels | Battery → motor → driven wheel | Handlebar/lean; friction + regen | Stand-on or seated micromobility platform |
| Fan-propelled bicycle | Ground / bicycle wheels | Engine or motor → air fan/propeller → air thrust | Front wheel/body lean; wheel brakes | Wheels support and steer; air—not the wheel—receives propulsive reaction |
| Airboat / fan-propelled boat | Water / displacement or planing hull | Engine or motor → air propeller/fan → air thrust | Air rudders, thrust vector or differential thrust | Hull is water-supported while propulsion reacts against air |
| Submerged-propeller boat | Water / hull | Engine or motor → submerged propeller → water thrust | Rudder, steerable drive, pods or differential thrust | Propulsor acts below the water surface against water |
| Waterjet boat | Water / hull | Engine or motor → pump/impeller → waterjet | Steerable nozzle/reversing bucket | Internal water-flow path and nozzle replace exposed propeller |
| Hovercraft | Surface / air cushion | Lift fan → pressure cushion; separate or shared thrust fan | Rudders, thrust vector, skirts | Support and propulsion can both use air but are separate flow paths |
| Amphibious propeller car | Ground wheels ↔ water hull | Wheel traction on land; water or air propulsor afloat | Mode-dependent wheel/rudder/thrust steering | Configuration and active movement path change at transition |
| Blimp | Air / aerostatic lift | Lift gas supports; motorized propellers provide thrust | Vectoring, fins, differential thrust, ballast/trim | Static lift is not motor propulsion |