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A Game for the Simulation of a Martian Base
Marc Salotti[2000]
Abstract
We would like to create a realistic game based on the ability to survive and to develop the activities of a Martian base.During the simulation, the astronauts have to explore the surface and find the resources they need to grow plants, tobuild new objects, to repair machines, to build new habitats and finally to improve the autonomy of the base.Meanwhile, they have to maintain the life support system, the energy system and the rover in good working order. Wehave tried to realize an educational game, taking into account the technological solutions that will be exploited on Mars.We are still in the early stages of the development and the characteristics of the simulator have not been preciselydefined. We propose to generalize the concept of object and the concept of transformer, in order to facilitate thedefinition of the scenarios and the extension of the game. A web site is devoted to the development of the game:http://msn.ifrance.com/salotti/jeumars.htm.
1 Introduction
We have recently investigated the creation of a game for the simulation of the development of a Martian base. Thougha similar but more ambitious objective has been proposed by the authors of SimMars, we were not aware of their work and our approach is in no way comparable. At the moment, we are not intending to sell the final product. Our aim israther to develop an educational game, that could be presented to people interested in the development of a Martian base.Our objective is to present the main difficulties that will be encountered by the astronauts and the possible technologicalsolutions that will be available on the Red Planet. An important scientific data collection is actually being done in orderto take into account the main processes that will define the development of the Martian base and the survival of theastronauts (chemical reactions, rover engine, life support system, . . .).
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We have been inspired by typical simulation games, like SimCity or Age of Empires, the book of Zubrin
The Case for  Mars, the Plan to Settle the Red Planet 
” and also Stanley Robinson’s famous trilogy.
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. The evolution of the gameis indeed determined by the activities of the astronauts. For instance, they start the maintenance of the life supportsystem, go into the rover and explore the neighboring crater, or build a new object using the materials stocked at thebase. The main objects of the game involve the life support system, the production of energy, the exploration of theMartian surface, the greenhouse, the chemical unit and some tools and machines. We have tried to facilitate themanagement of the different objects. This important point is detailed in Section 2. Particular attention has also beenpaid to the graphics and the movement of objects. In order to enforce the attractive aspect of the game, we propose touse real images of Mars, provided by NASA / JPL / Malin Space Science Systems for instance, and the synthetic imagesof the Mars Society for the base and the rover. The management of the map, the moves and the different windows areexplained in Section 3. Since the development of the game is still in its early stages, it is not possible to give the detailsof the scenarios. The basic structure of a scenario file is nevertheless presented in Section 4. Some perspectives arediscussed in conclusion and preliminary images of the game are presented to illustrate the project.
2 Management Of Objects
2.1 Data structures
Many objects have to be managed. The problem is that there are many different properties and actions attached to eachof them. For instance, a nuclear reactor supplies energy to the base, a rover is a moving object and the oxygen stock isconsumed by the astronauts. Moreover, according to us, it is not the role of the programmer to define the list of possibleobjects of the game. The objects list and their corresponding properties are defined in specific “objects declarationfiles.” The scenario designer has the ability to modify the files and to create new objects with new properties withoutrecompiling the sources.
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Marc Salotti; Planète Mars, France; marc.salotti@wanadoo.fr
 
In the current version of the project, the same basic object structure is used to represent all objects of the game. It isdefined as follows, using Pascal formalism.
robject = recordname : string;id : integer;// Identifier of the object.category : integer;// constant : LSS, energy, exploration, chemistry, food, tools, human . . .state : integer;// constant : ok, damaged, in production, stopped, . . .lbmp : TClassListBmp;// List of images representing the different aspects of the objectweight : real;// Its weight, in kilogramspower : real;// Its power consumption or production, in Wattslifetime : real;// Without maintenance, an object breaks down after a whilecontainer : pobject;// Pointer to the container (another object)pdegrad : pdegradation;// Pointer to a structure with information on the maintenance procedureptransform : ptransformation;// Pointer to a structure with information on the sources and the // products of the transformation, nil if it is not a transformerlastro : TclassListObjects;// List of astronauts working on this objectlobjects : TclassListObjects;// List of included objectspmv : pmove;// Pointer to a structure with information on the possible move // nil if the object is not allowed to movelevents : TclassListEvents;// List of events attached to the objectsend;
Note: Characters to the right of the // are comments.
All objects share the same basic properties and functions. Then, if it is a transformer or if it participates in theproduction of energy (for instance), new properties and new functions are specifically added.
2.2 Transformers
Transformers are particular objects that can produce or create other objects. A typical transformer is the reactor that willprovide in-situ propellant for the rover and other machines. The sources are carbon dioxide (from the atmosphere) andhydrogen and the products are methane and oxygen. A rover engine is also a transformer: its sources are for examplemethane and oxygen and its products are carbon dioxide and water. The concept of transformation can be applied toother domains, for instance to the production of food or energy. In order to generalize this concept, a new data structurehas been introduced. It is defined as follows:
rtransformation = recordlsources : TClassListNeeds;// List of objects sources and their quantity needed for the transformationlproducts : TclassListNeeds;// List of objects products and their quantitytimetransformation : real;// Required time for a single transformationpowertransformation : real;// Energy required for the transformationtypeoftransformation: integer;// Constant : continue or uniqueend;
General functions are associated with this structure. One of them checks that all sources are locally available andanother one proceeds to the transformation, updating the quantity of sources and products. A timer is used to take intoaccount all events of the game. When a transformation is desired, a particular event is inserted in the list of events. Thetransformation is achieved when the required time is over. A transformation can occur only once or it can be continuous,depending on the way it works. The automation of all kinds of transformation is very important for the flexibility of thegame and its extension. It makes it possible to change the efficiency of a transformer or even to change the input andthe output of a machine. For instance, if a new technology enables the construction of a new engine for a rover, thereis no problem taking it into account.
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A Game for the Simulation of a Martian Base
 
2.3 Examples of objects
Since we are actually collecting scientific data on the development of a Martian base, the list of possible objects is notdefinitive. In the current version of the game, the main objects are the habitat, the greenhouse, the nuclear reactor, thechemical unit, the rover and four astronauts. In the habitat, the main elements are the different parts of the life supportsystem. The greenhouse management is simplified: the seeds are transformed (using the transformation processexplained earlier) into vegetables or fruits using a certain amount of fertilizer and water. The nuclear reactor suppliesenergy to the base. Of course, the consumption should never exceed the production, otherwise all machines areautomatically switched off. Meanwhile, the stock of Uranium slowly decreases.The chemical transformations are also very important. The different stocks of oxygen, hydrogen, water, nitrogen,methane, silicon, ethylene, and so on, are defined as chemical objects. For some of them, the initial stock is not empty,but for the others, the player will have to explore the planet and bring them back to the base. According to Zubrin’splan to settle the planet, there are many technologies that can be used to build new objects and to improve the autonomyof the base.
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In the domain of energy, solar dynamic systems, photovoltaic systems, windmills or geothermal power canbe manufactured on Mars. They will provide additional power to the base and finally replace the nuclear reactor.Ceramics, glass, plastics, steel, and copper will also be manufactured on Mars in order to build new machines, newhabitats, and new tools. These elements will be introduced into the game step by step as the player reaches new levels.
3 Graphics And Interface
3.1 Exploration
Graphics, sounds, moves and interaction with the user are important parts of the game. We are still working on apreliminary version and many changes may be desired before the final product. Actually, the main window shows apicture of a small region of Mars (see Figure 1). In order to propose a realistic map, a real image has been chosen, thanksto the data base of NASA / JPL / Malin Space Science Systems. It should be mentioned that such images may only becopied for personal use.
Figure 1. Main window. The rover is selected.
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A Game for the Simulation of a Martian Base
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