[1.2.2] Phoenix Industries ³Sat (CubeSat mod) (v2.2, compatible with TweakScale and MechJeb)

[Qwarkk]

Is there an alternative download link to this mod anywhere? KerbalStuff link is RIP now

[-ctn-]

Not yet, hopefully tomorrow I can find somewhere to upload it. 

[Rybo]

Dropbox is a pretty decent intermediate solution IMHO.

[-ctn-]

That's what I was going to do in the meantime, but wasn't sure if DropBox has bandwidth allocations and I need it for work related space. 

[Rybo]

Google Drive is another option. Pretty much identical in function and capability to DropBox.

[SyrusDrake]

This looks amazing! I've been looking for a CubeSat mod for KSP for ages and aside from BOXSat (which isn't really a miniature satellite), I could never find one.
On the topic of download sites, I've noticed you are hosting your Cargo Resupply System on Curse Forge as well. Wouldn't that be an alternative for this mode too?

[legoclone09]

Awesome job! I'll just send a ton of these to other planets rescaled to 0.3125m!

[FiiZzioN]

Can we get a SpaceDock download link? Can't seem to get the file due to it being only hosted on one site... which just so happened to stop service. I highly recommend having more than one download link, say SpaceDock and Dropbox / Google Drive. Can't wait to try them

[-ctn-]

Updated for SpaceDock download availability. Check the link on the original post!

[akron]

This is awesome!

[Deimos Rast]

Quick question for you: is it possible for me to reorient the "up" direction in the configs or is that something more involved? I like to have the opening face up, so I can put an engine on the bottom, but that screws up the nav ball (and MJ), so my work around has been to put tiny probe cores inside the cube sats (yes, even the tiny ones!) and do "control from here" but if there is an easier way, please let me know.
 All I saw in the configs were attach nodes, but maybe I overlooked something.

Thanks again for this great mod.

[Svm420]

@-ctn- 

It may just be me, but I think the transforms(?) are backward for the solar panels. Everytime I use them I only get power gen when they are facing away from the sun. If they are dead on they gen 0 power. Anyone else experince this or have they been working fine?

[-ctn-]

6 hours ago, Deimos Rast said:

Quick question for you: is it possible for me to reorient the "up" direction in the configs or is that something more involved? I like to have the opening face up, so I can put an engine on the bottom, but that screws up the nav ball (and MJ), so my work around has been to put tiny probe cores inside the cube sats (yes, even the tiny ones!) and do "control from here" but if there is an easier way, please let me know.
 All I saw in the configs were attach nodes, but maybe I overlooked something.

Thanks again for this great mod.

As far as I know, that requires re-orienting the model in Unity, and can't be done with a config. The work around you describe is what I've done in the past. 

 

As for the solar panels, I would love if anyone else reported problems. They seem to work well on my machine. 

[Deimos Rast]

Hmmm, never mind them.

Regarding the solar panels, they more or less work as intended. I say more or less because the big one is as expensive as the smaller one, and they've been exploding on me lately. Namely, on launch, but I suspect that's and issue with FAR not recognizing the fairing they were in (which is weird that they were the only part affected, but whatever) or them exploding on deployment (which might have been a clipping issue), which I worked around by enabling invulnerability/unbreakable joints. They do fold up kind of funny at times (clip inside the cube body). Not sure any of those issues though are problems inherent to the panels though. I was just using them and they worked fine.

5 hours ago, Svm420 said:

@-ctn- 

It may just be me, but I think the transforms(?) are backward for the solar panels. Everytime I use them I only get power gen when they are facing away from the sun. If they are dead on they gen 0 power. Anyone else experince this or have they been working fine?

One tip on transforms for the cube sat is that it matters a lot if you have on "c" (in the editor) which will affect if your panels snap to the inside of the cube or the outside of the cube. That's probably your issue with the solar panels.

[-ctn-]

Yes, be sure to use the angle snap when attaching the panels. I haven't had anything explode using stock aerodynamics. 

[Svm420]

@-ctn-

The panels are definitely broken for me. Here is pics to demo. Notice panels facing opposite the sun or flipped over wrong side up are the only times I get power from yours. Notice the Ven stock revamp stock panel is generating power in the same orientation that your do not. IDK how it could just be me, but there it is. The only change on my end is a resized the model via rescale factor to 2.3 as I have done to all other solar panels in my game that work perfectly fine 100% normal, and to add if it was the rescale factor that is the issue then everyone would have the same issue with tweakscale.  

Spoiler

 

 

[-ctn-]

Huh, that's really weird. I'll start looking into it. Thanks!

[Kerbal01]

Will you make a deploying system for these cubesats?

[Miravlix]

AntennaRange support:

@PART[3Sat_small]:NEEDS[AntennaRange]
{
    @MODULE[ModuleDataTransmitter]
    {
        @name = ModuleLimitedDataTransmitter
        nominalRange = 3000000
        simpleRange = 9000000
        maxPowerFactor = 8
        maxDataFactor = 4
    }
}

@PART[3Sat_tiny]:NEEDS[AntennaRange]
{
    @MODULE[ModuleDataTransmitter]
    {
        @name = ModuleLimitedDataTransmitter
        nominalRange = 3000000
        simpleRange = 9000000
        maxPowerFactor = 8
        maxDataFactor = 4
    }
}

 

Only been doing ModuleManager stuff for all of 30 seconds, so this is most likely a bit rough. Not sure it's the correct values either, maybe it should be less/more/same as the small stock antenna?

 

Stock Antenna Data:

        nominalRange = 6364
        simpleRange = 20500000
        maxPowerFactor = 8
        maxDataFactor = 4

 

[Matuchkin]

1. How big is it?

2. Does it have openable hatches?

3. How many parts are available that are made for the sattelite body?

[-ctn-]

11 minutes ago, Matuchkin said:

1. How big is it?

2. Does it have openable hatches?

3. How many parts are available that are made for the sattelite body?

Well, according to the original post - 0.625 and 1.25m, with TweakScale support so you can make them any size you want. 

Nope. The bottom of the cubes are open so that you can stack parts inside. Like fuel, reaction wheels, engines. Again, see original post for a picture  

None, mod currently only includes two cubesat bodies in different sizes and their matching solar panels. 

Edited February 28, 2016 by -ctn-

[ThaZeus]

Great work! One thing i would do would be to remove the version file so i can just extract it instead of extracting and copying and pasting. anyway.. Great Work! You're only a "few" great mods away from being NecroBones level of awesomeness!.

[olekopyto]

Lovely!

[Miravlix]

Switched to RemoteTech, so here is how to get RemoteTech support in CubeSat's:

Spoiler

// 3Sat RemoteTech support
@PART[3Sat_small]:NEEDS[RemoteTech]
{
    !MODULE[ModuleDataTransmitter] {}
    
    @MODULE[ModuleAnimateGeneric]
    {
        %allowManualControl = false
    }
    
    %MODULE[ModuleRTAntenna] {
        %IsRTActive = true
        %Mode0OmniRange = 0
        %Mode1OmniRange = 1250000
        %EnergyCost = 0.06
        
        %DeployFxModules = 0
        
        %TRANSMITTER {
            %PacketInterval = 0.3
            %PacketSize = 2
            %PacketResourceCost = 15.0
        }
    }
    
    %MODULE[ModuleSPUPassive] {}
}

@PART[3Sat_tiny]:NEEDS[RemoteTech]
{
    !MODULE[ModuleDataTransmitter] {}
    
    @MODULE[ModuleAnimateGeneric]
    {
        %allowManualControl = false
    }
    
    %MODULE[ModuleRTAntenna] {
        %IsRTActive = true
        %Mode0OmniRange = 0
        %Mode1OmniRange = 750000
        %EnergyCost = 0.04
        
        %DeployFxModules = 0
        
        %TRANSMITTER {
            %PacketInterval = 0.3
            %PacketSize = 2
            %PacketResourceCost = 15.0
        }
    }
    
    %MODULE[ModuleSPUPassive] {}
}

 

It makes it equal to first squad antenna, but since the Cubes Antenna theoretically seems to be part of the chassis and wouldn't break, it's also configured to be on and without the MaxQ value that makes stock antennas break.

 

I'm used to the sharing mentality of the open source community and this is hardly my work, considering the two Module Manager files is cut & paste from Antenna Range and RemoteTech, but just in case, both MM scripts is free to use, with no strings attached.

 

Edit: Accidentally posted before I was done testing. Seems to work, ModuleSPUPassive limit it to mostly be an antenna, with direct remote control. Investigating if this is why Breaks/Gear/Light buttons can't be controlled, when using 3Sat as a Rover body. Question is, should 3Sat's be a probe cores with antennas or just antenna? (Change ModuleSPUPassive to ModuleSPU to make it a probe core)

 

Adjusted Range and EnergyCost, The Tiny Solar panels had a hard time keeping up with the cost, the small sat would be fine with the higher values. Also if you want to switch to an integrated probe core, you should at least double the energycost if not more.

Edited March 9, 2016 by Miravlix

[Bit Fiddler]

is it possible to surface mount on the sides of the cube or only the top?  I have tried to attach things to the side walls but it does not seem to work.   it does however work fine for the top side.

 

also as a side note:   if you made a "cover plate" that would attach to the opening so the cube was then closed it would satisfy those asking for a closed cube. and if this cover then had an attach node you could now stack them.

the nature of box sat if you made some basic "internals" that were designed to snap in to the box; reaction wheels, batteries, fuel tanks etc.  and if these were KIS compatible we would have another alternative for upgrading satellites like box sat.   and form fitted adapters to match the truss, square decouplers etc.  this would then be giving users far more configuration options.  and satisfy most of the requests in this thread.

 

granted all this takes effort and I know from making mods for other games that as soon as you start to add to your mod others will want something more and soon you have this mod that has taken over your life...