This invention relates to a space vehicle, and more particularly to living quarters having a 1 G environment within the space vehicle.
Space travel produces a weightless condition which alters the normal body metabolism as well as bodily functions of human occupants of a space vehicle. In order to overcome the weightless conditions of space travel, the body of the space vehicle itself may be rotated about an axis in order to generate an artificial gravity effect, particularly in the living quarters of the occupants of the space vehicle, as illustrated in the following U.S. patents:
______________________________________ 3,169,725 Berglund Feb. 16, 1965 3,210,026 Frisch Oct. 5, 1965 3,300,162 Maynard et al Jan. 24, 1967 3,333,788 Dryden Aug. 1, 1967 3,749,332 Gray Jul. 31, 1973 4,057,207 Hogan Nov. 8, 1977 ______________________________________
The above Berglund and Maynard et al patents also disclose separate rotatable space lab capsules, primarily designed to create zero-gravity conditions relative to the rest of the vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,405,454 issued to Zeff on Oct. 15, 1968, discloses a waste management system for collecting and storage of waste products under weightless conditions, particularly in space vehicles.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,536,324 of Ahrens issued Oct. 27, 1970, and 4,389,047 issued to Hall on June 21, 1983, disclose rotary treadmills.
FIG. 4 of the Frisch U.S. Pat. No. 3,210,026 discloses a ladder 82 permitting an occupant of the space vehicle to move from a zero or low-gravity chamber 24 to a higher-gravity living quarters 32.
In column 1, lines 59-63 of the Dryden patent, and column 1, lines 63-67, and column 2, lines 1-3 of the Gray patent, is described, as prior art, a proposal for a centrifuge type of device within a space vehicle into which the occupants of the space ship can enter at certain intervals for subjection to artificial gravity forces. However, neither Dryden nor Gray disclose any specific structure for carrying out such proposals.