Tucker tube

Tucker tubes were devices, each consisting of a pair of generators connected by a transparent tube, in which energy beams were visible. Their power output was measured in s, a unit of subspace distortion. ()
Tucker tubes were already in use among Humans in the 22nd century, including on Cold Station 12. () In the 23rd century they were used on United Federation of Planets facilities such as Regula I and Starfleet ships. (; ) By the 24th century they were in common use not only in the Federation, but also among non-Federation species such as Talarians and Tanugans. (; )
Tucker tubes were used by Doctor Arik Soong in his hideout on Trialas IV, as well as by his descendant Noonien Soong in his laboratory on Omicron Theta. (; )
In 2381, Ensign Sam Rutherford increased the power output of the Tucker tubes on by seven picocochranes. Meanwhile, Ensign Livik added a third tube to create an improved version of the device, which he named "Billups tubes" after his superior, Andy Billups. ()
==Appendices==
===Background information===
The device was a prop commonly seen in many movies and TV series aside from Star Trek. It was created by the company Modern Props, originally for The Incredible Hulk television series. Its catalogue number was #195-290-1 and it was described as "dual generators with rotating neon lights inside an acrylic tube; light-controlled panel with knobs and buttons". Notable appearances include Airplane II: The Sequel, where it was seen on the lunar base commanded by William Shatner's character, Buck Murdock.
It first appeared on Star Trek in and was used multiple times in , and , but was not named until . Prior to this, they were informally known as "lateral neon "blinky" units". (Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion (1st ed., p. 227))
The name is a reference to Charles Tucker III. In an interview with Screenrant, supervising director Barry J. Kelly mentions "references to [Star Trek:] Enterprise" and the "name-drop [of] someone about a particular engineering element." . Based on the name and its appearances in it is likely that the device was invented by Tucker prior to 2154.
category:Technology