A comscanner was a handheld communications and scanning device used by many advanced civilizations of the early 25th century such as the Planetary Union and the Krill (called a Go-Spar[1]). The comscanner was an essential multi-purpose tool - part personal communication device, part scanner, and part computer - and performed many functions through its touchscreen interface.[2] A variant of the comscanner in use by Medical officers the Union was a medscanner.
A Planetary Union comscanner was a highly technical device with a button array for advanced inputs and a pop-out screen to read the results of a scan. Thanks to the digital screen, the button layout changes based on whether the device is in "com mode" (for communications) or "scan mode."[3] The comscanner came equipped with its own computer: 16 integrated processing units and 32 holographic memory chips.[4]
Every officer was given a comscanner upon boarding a ship for the first time.[2] The device was considered standard equipment for any spacecraft's away team. It could be programmed to send messages at regular intervals.[5] A comscanner had several ranges: a line-of-sight range of several dozen kilometers;[2] an extended range of over 50 kilometers by "exploiting" nearby communication infrastructure "to amplify signals;"[2] an extended range of at least 1,000 kilometers by bouncing a signal off a planet's atmosphere;[5] and, by using a relay satellite or a ship in orbit as a relay, an extended range of thousands of kilometers.[2]
In emergency situations, the comscanner could send a distress signal. An officer could narrow or broaden its signal direction; a narrower distress signal would have a longer range and better audiovisual quality.[6] An officer could also set the comscanner to survival mode, where its scanner would constantly scan the surrounding area for "airborne pathogens, radiation, electrical activity, animal movements, and other potential threats."[7]
A comscanner had a detector array for scanning, which could be set to a "broad spectrum" scan for general readings or instructed to look for particular features.[6] A comscanner could detect and scan life forms up to a distance of several kilometers (although this could be shorter depending on the size and composition of the life form).[8] When scanning a life form, the comscanner looked at unique biosigns of an individual.[9] It did not read biosigns in the Kaylon, though it could detect electrical fluctuations and chemical reactions.[10] Radioactive sources could be scanned to resolutions of under one angstrom. The comscanner could read atmospheric gas' composition, density, temperature, and could measure its molecules to one part per billion.[6]
Each comscanner came equipped with a Translator, a program that rendered alien speech and writing into the user's native language.[11] It also had a database of geological, biological, and atmospheric information on tens of thousands of planets.[12] The comscanner could identify edible and harmful compounds within plants, allowing the officer to find food even on unknown worlds.[13]
A comscanner signal could be hampered or blocked by magnetic fields, ionized gas, damping fields, or natural features such as dense metallic or rock formations (especially in a valley or cave). Union officers were instructed to find high ground, free from interference, where a signal would be strongest.[6]
Medical officers used comscanners to diagnose patients. A physiometric scan would provide vital signs and report certain viruses, bacteria, toxins in the body. It could perform a low-resolution x-ray imaging. The comscanner could also provide basic information on organ and cellular performance (including the neurons and the nervous system), but only at a "rudimentary" level and more precise medical scanning equipment was required for detailed reading.[14]
Go-Spar
A Krill comscanner was called a go-spar.[1] It resembled two knife blades. Schematics are published in The World of the Orville and The Guide to The Orville. The communications array, into which the holder spoke, was at the base (or the "blades") of the device, where a light called the Active Indicator showed whether the device was actively listening. The activation button sat on the side. Most of the device consisted of the communications screen, which displayed information pertaining to calls. The bottom base of the go-spar could pop out to reveal a screen showing readings from scans. The final end consisted of the device's antenna array scan.
Production
According to the first draft of the pilot script, the name of the comscanner was communicator, which was changed sometime before filming.[15]
During the initial stages of production, the Planetary Union comscanner was white. An early sketch by creator Seth MacFarlane shows that the scanning screen was a circular, rather than square.
The Krill comscanner's semblance as a knife was no coincidence. "With the Krill comscanner, it almost looks like a weapon," prop master Bryan Rodgers commented. "There are two dagger-like antennae, and it also has a green light that lights up when you talk."[16]
Differences between Union and Krill comscanners were intentional to distinguish the opposite cultures. For example, the Krill comscanner's Global Scanner Screen pops down from the base of the comscanner, while the Union's pops out from the top. "When you hit the button the comscanner drops and pops down when it lights up, so it's taking one design and reversing it for the bad guys so everything has a counterpoint."[16]
Trivia
A Union comscanner prop was given away to a fan by The Orville cast at the 2018 San Diego Comic-Con.[17]
