Magnetic Space Parts

[LightStrikeBoom]

I want to be an inventor and I have some designs that would be good for KSP :

1. Magnetic Pod(I have suggested this before but with almost no detail) It has a steering wheel held by magnetism also the pod is super expensive with the most torque and power is also is very clean but heavy : http://imgur.com/BHDJSnq.

2. Magnetic Space Suits(as an option when selecting kerbals) they attract them to nearby ships.

3. Magnetic Gloves, so a kerbal can grab on to any part of a rocket.

4. Magnetic Wheels, so you can drive rovers through space ships.

5. Optional Magnetic Shoes for kerbals allowing them to walk in space ships.

6. Retractable Magnetic Parachutes(they have small amounts of metal in them and super strong magnets at the bottom), they are slow but can be reused.

7. Some parts having metal in them as a option but it adds to the mass(for the ones without metal).

This is all I have for now bye.

[sumghai]

As mentioned here, magnetic boots, gloves and suits are impractical:

Not to rain on anyone's parade, but there are some good reasons why magnetic boots have never been used in real spaceflight.

- Modern spacecraft are generally fabricated using lightweight but strong aluminium alloys, which are non-ferrous (i.e. lacks iron). Magnetic attraction requires surfaces made of ferrous alloys (i.e. contains iron), which are much heavier, and would require more fuel (and thus be more expensive) to put into orbit.

- Any magnet strong enough to hold a human or a Kerbal onto a ferrous surface would, by definition, make it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to move their feet. Either Jeb would exhaust himself very quickly, or shuffle awkwardly along the surface of the spacecraft hull. Pure electromagnetic boots would require bulky power supplies or a powered tether, severely limiting the astronaut/Kerbalnaut's range.

- Any magnet strong enough to hold a human or a Kerbal onto a ferrous surface would also interfere the avionics of a spacecraft.

- NASA did develop a special kind of magnetic boot (pic 1, pic 2) that used a combination of permanent and electromagnets to toggle magnetic attraction on and off, via magnetic flux switching. While definitely more compact and energy-saving compared to purely electromagnetic boots, astronauts still found them too bulky, cumbersome and impractical, and so the project was abandoned.

- Floating and free-flying on EVA is still much faster than clunking around awkwardly on a metal surface, and time is of the essence in emergencies.

- Most importantly, magnetic boots are not a substitute for gravity. On Earth/Kerbin, gravity is a body force (i.e. applies equally to all parts of the human/Kerbal body), and if the astronaut/Kerbalnaut is wearing magnetic boots, only their feet will feel the pull towards the ferrous surface. Imagine how hard it is to move when your feet are fixed to a surface while the rest of your body is floating willy-nilly.

[kerbiloid]

Electromagnetic floor doesn't require powered tether and iron as well.

Iron boots, proximity sensors, segmented electromagnetic floor with steps highlight.

And disco light ball.

Edited September 15, 2015 by kerbiloid

[Coyote27]

I prefer the velcro-slippers approach to mucking around with magnets. So much simpler and lighter.

[LightStrikeBoom]

As mentioned here, magnetic boots, gloves and suits are impractical:

They are but heavy and hard magnetic shoes would mainly be dragging across the floor as long as it doesn't hit an edge you would have to leave the shoes on the ground to get off you could have them but it would cost a fortune for the building process mainly giant compactors and they would weigh alot like 100 pounds so maybe only being able to use them in certain places smooth enough to overcome friction.

[sumghai]

They are but heavy and hard magnetic shoes would mainly be dragging across the floor as long as it doesn't hit an edge you would have to leave the shoes on the ground to get off

Which limits their utility in real life and usefulness in-game.

you could have them but it would cost a fortune for the building process mainly giant compactors

What do giant compactors have to do with this?

and they would weigh alot like 100 pounds

I don't think the mass of magnet boots weighs the same as the imaginary animal.

100 pounds is roughly equivalent to 45 kgs, which is impossibly heavy for any type of boot - for comparison, the basic Space Shuttle EVA suit plus PLSS backpack has a total mass of 254 lb (115 kg), where boots comprise a small fraction of the total mass.

so maybe only being able to use them in certain places smooth enough to overcome friction.

As I've pointed out, spacecraft hulls are almost never made from ferrous (iron-containing) material due to weight, so there would be virtually no surface for the magnetic boots to stick to. Also, strong magnets required to hold humans/Kerbals down would interfere with spacecraft avionics (i.e. Jeb tries to shuffle out of the airlock in LightStrikeBoomCorp's magnetic boots, and all nearby guidance/communications systems start behaving oddly / fail completely)