DAXSI-Explorer

An open architecture for a kinetic, autonomous physical-science laboratory built on the Tesla Cybertruck platform with an edge xAI/NVIDIA compute cluster and Starlink orbital link.

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Project Status

This repository is an engineering specification, not a product. It is structured to separate four layers that are often conflated:

Layer	Description	Maturity
Vision	Why AI must leave the cloud and touch physical reality	Conceptual
Architecture	System topology, blocks, interfaces	Specified
Feasibility	TRL of each component, power/thermal budgets	Partially validated
Roadmap	Phased path from bench to autonomous missions	Draft

Current system-level TRL: 2-3 (concept documented, no bench validation). Target TRL after Phase 0: 4.

Every technical claim in this repository is tagged with its maturity. Components that are COTS and available today are marked [COTS]. Components that exist as prototypes are marked [PROTO]. Components that are architectural placeholders are marked [CONCEPT].

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Core Thesis

Current frontier models are trained on web text: a closed loop of human writing, synthetic noise, and structural bias. This produces systems that know what humans have written about the world, but have no direct empirical access to the world itself.

DAXSI is a response to that limit. It is a mobile sensor-and-compute platform that collects first-principles physical data in the field, validates it locally against an open-weights model, and synchronizes compressed knowledge graphs with an orbital validation layer via Starlink.

The platform is not a vehicle with a server. It is a kinetic instrument.

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Architecture Overview

Physical World

[Sensor Matrix] ROS 2 / iceoryx / PTP

[Isolation Enclosure] Al shell + Faraday NC-Berry Rip Stop Al foam damping + wire-rope isolators Optical ports (ODU expanded beam)

[Compute Cluster] Node 01 Command Core 128 GB VRAM Node 02 Inference Primary 192 GB VRAM Node 03 RAG / Storage 128 GB VRAM Baseline: 448 GB, scalable to ~1 TB

[Thermal Harvesting] PCM buffer + STC array 48V auxiliary rail

[Manipulator] Retractable arm, IP67 stowed

[Portable Kit] Handheld spectrometer + gas analyzer + Starlink Mini

[AI Layer] Local backbone: open-weights 70B Orbital validation: xAI Grok via Starlink Human-in-the-Loop: operator as mentor

[Knowledge Graph] compressed orbital

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Compute Cluster

Block-scalable architecture. Baseline configuration uses COTS hardware; expansion path is defined but not yet validated.

Node	Role	Baseline Hardware	VRAM	Status
01	Command Core	2 Jetson AGX Orin 64GB	128 GB	[COTS]
02	Inference Primary	4 RTX 6000 Ada 48GB	192 GB	[COTS]
03	RAG / Storage	8 Jetson Orin NX 16GB	128 GB	[COTS]
Baseline total			448 GB combined
02 expanded	Inference Primary	8 RTX 6000 Ada 48GB	384 GB	[COTS]
03 expanded	RAG / Storage	4 L40S 48GB	192 GB	[COTS]
Expanded total			704 GB
Further expansion	External dock	trailer or static dock	~1 TB	[CONCEPT]

Hard ceiling is defined by Cybertruck Powershare thermal and power envelope, not by available hardware.

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Sensor Matrix

Full-spectrum perception is organized by physical field, not by device list. Each field maps to the best available COTS sensor for a moving platform.

Field	Sub-range	Sensor	Status
EM optical	UVVIS 3501000 nm	Cubert ULTRIS X20 (snapshot)	[COTS]
EM optical	VNIR 4001000 nm	Specim AFX10	[COTS]
EM optical	SWIR 9001700 nm	ATH1700-17 (snapshot, 25 fps)	[COTS]
EM optical	SWIR ext. 9602500 nm	Specim SX25	[COTS]
EM thermal	LWIR 7.712.3 µm	FLIR Boson 640	[COTS]
EM ranging	865 nm	Ouster OS1-128 (865 nm)	[COTS]
EM ionizing	gamma / beta	SBM-20 Geiger	[COTS]
EM magnetic	3-axis	fluxgate magnetometer	[COTS]
Chemical	VOC, CO2, CH4, NOx	Bosch BME680 + NDIR + electrochemical cells	[COTS]
Acoustic	audible + infrasound	ReSpeaker Mic Array v2.0	[COTS]
Kinetic	9-DOF	Bosch BNO055	[COTS]

Snapshot hyperspectral instruments are preferred over pushbroom for a moving platform. Pushbroom requires stable motion and produces distortion under vibration.

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Isolation Enclosure

Each compute block is housed in an aluminum enclosure with layered isolation.

Layer	Function	Material	Status
Structural shell	Mechanical + primary EMI	Aluminum, 35 mm, sealed	[COTS]
Damping fill	Structural vibration damping	Aluminum foam, 1015 mm	[COTS]
EMI inner liner	Magnetic + electric shielding	Faraday CYBER NC-Berry Rip Stop, 75 dB, 100 MHz18 GHz, double layer	[COTS]
Passive isolation	Broadband vibration isolation	Wire-rope isolators	[COTS]
Adaptive isolation	Tunable damping	HSLDS magnetic-pneumatic modules	[PROTO]
Optical ports	Galvanic isolation between blocks	ODU Expanded Beam, IP67	[COTS]
Coolant feedthroughs	Sealed liquid loop	Hermetic fittings	[COTS]

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Thermal and Energy Harvesting

Waste heat is not discarded. It is buffered and partially recovered.

Component	Function	Status
PCM buffer	Phase-change material stores heat during operation, releases it to cabin during cold cycles	[COTS]
STC array	Semiconductor-sensitized thermal cells convert low-grade waste heat to 48V rail	[PROTO]
Liquid loop A	RTX 6000 Ada cluster roof radiator	[COTS]
Liquid loop B	Command core chassis-contact cooling blocks	[COTS]

Estimated net reduction of static-monitoring power draw: 812%, to be validated in Phase 1.

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AI Layer

Three layers, each with a distinct role.

Layer	Role	Implementation	Status
Local backbone	Zero-latency inference, offline autonomy	Open-weights 70B, 4-bit AWQ, model-agnostic	[COTS]
Orbital validation	Cross-check, enrichment, weight updates	xAI Grok via Starlink	[COTS]
Human-in-the-Loop	Final arbitration, annotation, LoRA/QLoRA triggers	Operator console	[COTS]

The local backbone is model-agnostic by design. Any open-weights checkpoint can be substituted. The orbital layer is xAI-specific by project intent, consistent with the Cybertruck / Starlink platform.

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Manipulator

Retractable arm, stowed in a sealed bay under the Vault, deployed via linear actuator. Controlled as a ROS 2 action server.

Parameter	Value	Status
Degrees of freedom	6	[COTS]
Payload	3 kg	[COTS]
Stowed protection	IP67 bay, two-point mechanical lock, damping inserts	[COTS]
Control interface	ROS 2 action	[COTS]

Vibration load on the stowed arm under off-road motion is an open question. See 01_FEASIBILITY/open_questions.md.

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Portable Kit

Handheld measurement suite for locations the vehicle cannot reach. Thin client: collects, compresses, transmits to Node 02 or to the orbital layer.

Component	Function	Status
LiSen iSpecField-HH	Spectroradiometer, 2001100 nm, <2 kg	[COTS]
LiSen iSpecField-WNIR-HH	Spectroradiometer, 3502500 nm	[COTS]
ECOPROBE 5	PID + IR gas analyzer, VOC/CH4/CO2, 3 kg	[COTS]
Starlink Mini	1.16 kg, 2540 W, IP67, up to 100 Mbit/s	[COTS]
Tablet	ROS 2 client, compressed uplink	[COTS]

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CyberHab

Composite expedition pod mounted on the Vault utility rails. Dry architecture: no water mass.

Subsystem	Specification	Status
Shell	Carbon fiber sandwich, R-14, matte graphite	[COTS]
Sleeping platform	Folding memory foam	[COTS]
Wet block	Dry composting lavatory, positive-pressure ventilation	[COTS]
ECLSS	HEPA H14 + activated charcoal, positive pressure	[COTS]
Climate	48V heat pump, PCM-assisted	[COTS]
Solar	1.2 kW peak, MPPT	[COTS]

Water supply and UV-C loop are removed from the architecture. All remaining systems are dry.

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Power Budget

Baseline draw from Cybertruck Powershare 240V NEMA 14-50 outlet, 9.6 kW continuous.

Load	Peak	Average	Notes
Node 02 (4 RTX 6000 Ada)	1.2 kW	0.8 kW	Inference bursts
Node 01 (2 AGX Orin)	0.12 kW	0.08 kW	Continuous
Node 03 (8 Orin NX)	0.16 kW	0.12 kW	Continuous
Cooling loops	0.3 kW	0.15 kW	Variable
ECLSS + climate	0.4 kW	0.2 kW	Variable
Sensors	0.15 kW	0.1 kW	Continuous
Total	2.33 kW	1.45 kW	Within 9.6 kW envelope

Peak headroom is sufficient for transient bursts. Static monitoring states draw approximately 1.5 kW, consistent with multi-week station-keeping on traction battery reserves.

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Roadmap

Phase	Objective	Duration	Status
0	Bench validation: 1 GPU, 1 LiDAR, 1 hyperspectral sensor, ROS 2 pipeline	3 months	[PLANNED]
1	Static laboratory on Cybertruck: full Sensor Matrix, thermal loops, PCM	6 months	[PLANNED]
2	Mobile data collection: manipulator integration, portable kit field test	9 months	[PLANNED]
3	Autonomous missions: orbital validation loop, LoRA fine-tuning in field	12 months	[PLANNED]

Detailed phase documents are in 02_ROADMAP/.

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Repository Structure

daxsi-explorer/ README.md PHILOSOPHY.md INTELLECTUAL_PROPERTY.md 00_ARCHITECTURE/ 00_system_overview.md 01_compute_cluster.md 02_sensor_matrix.md 03_cyber_hab.md 04_ai_training_rag.md 05_manipulator.md 06_portable_kit.md 07_isolation_enclosure.md 01_FEASIBILITY/ prior_art.md trl_matrix.md power_budget.md thermal_budget.md open_questions.md 02_ROADMAP/ phase_0_bench.md phase_1_static.md phase_2_mobile.md phase_3_autonomous.md 03_USE_CASES/ materials.md biomimetics.md anomalies.md 04_GOVERNANCE/ data_sovereignty.md safety_ethics.md

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Author

Dwane Kimbrough (dwfirst)

• GitHub: https://github.com/dwfirst
• Project: DAXSI-Explorer

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License

Documentation licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. Code (if and when added) under MIT or Apache 2.0. Core concept, methodology, and brand identity remain under the author's copyright. See INTELLECTUAL_PROPERTY.md.