[1.8.1-1.12.x] Modular Launch Pads v2.6.1: Launch clamps evolved: Real-style launch bases and towers [03 July 2023]

[marioq70]

2 hours ago, marioq70 said:

Iam having an issue with the Soyuz launch base.

At the moment of  staging the launch from Soyuz base, the camera goes to a blank map view, pressing the map key twice return to the world view. What is happening?

Found the culprit mod: MOARDdV's Avionics Systems

[AlphaMensae]

6 minutes ago, marioq70 said:

Found the culprit mod: MOARDdV's Avionics Systems

Yeah, I saw another report of this, it's because the Soyuz gantry and solo crew elevator, as well as the general crew arms, have a crew capacity value to enable the use of the transfer airlock .

That mod apparently messes up because of that.

[marioq70]

16 hours ago, AlphaMensae said:

Yeah, I saw another report of this, it's because the Soyuz gantry and solo crew elevator, as well as the general crew arms, have a crew capacity value to enable the use of the transfer airlock .

That mod apparently messes up because of that.

Exactly that I thought¡ Something was taking the base or a part like a pod, but i dont have any other pod installed but stock, but i have IVA's, so i looked in the log for some IVA mod error, and found many about Avionics Systems not able to found something, so i removed the mod, and voila! Everything worked fine, reinstalled the mod, and the issue returned, so defintly was MOARDdV's Avionics Systems... a pity becuse i have it for the historical stock pods...

[GamingHen]

I'm having a problem where whenever I use the Modular Launch Pads parts in a build, the DeltaV indicators on the staging tiles get messed up. So you know on the staging tiles there are little blue indicators that show you how much DeltaV you have left in that stage? Well whenever I use the Launch Pads parts, they always read 0 m.s on all the staging tiles. Even on ones that just have parachutes. But it isn't on all the builds. I still can't figure out which parts cause this. It used to only happen on my Saturn 1B builds but now it looks like it's happening to my Space Shuttle build aswell. Is this a known issue or am I doing something wrong?

[AlphaMensae]

1 hour ago, GamingHen said:

I'm having a problem where whenever I use the Modular Launch Pads parts in a build, the DeltaV indicators on the staging tiles get messed up. So you know on the staging tiles there are little blue indicators that show you how much DeltaV you have left in that stage? Well whenever I use the Launch Pads parts, they always read 0 m.s on all the staging tiles. Even on ones that just have parachutes. But it isn't on all the builds. I still can't figure out which parts cause this. It used to only happen on my Saturn 1B builds but now it looks like it's happening to my Space Shuttle build aswell. Is this a known issue or am I doing something wrong?

Was this with the root part at the top of the rocket, like a command pod or probe core?  If not, then the values will be missing or messed up, since the calculator works from the top down. KER is like that too. Then again, the stock one is a little weird and that may be normal.

[cameronisher3]

I assume this was intentional but pointing it out just in case, the wheels on the Titan III/IV base are on the wrong sides when compared to the real world counterparts. 

Images for comparison:

IRL https://imgur.com/a/uvLZ9pW

KSP https://imgur.com/a/sWVzRHM

Love the mod, been using it for years!

[GamingHen]

On 11/29/2021 at 6:09 PM, AlphaMensae said:

Was this with the root part at the top of the rocket, like a command pod or probe core?  If not, then the values will be missing or messed up, since the calculator works from the top down. KER is like that too. Then again, the stock one is a little weird and that may be normal.

Yes it is with the capsule as the root part. I checked with 3 of my crafts that I'm having this problem with.

[AlphaMensae]

10 hours ago, GamingHen said:

Yes it is with the capsule as the root part. I checked with 3 of my crafts that I'm having this problem with.

Probably due to the stock calculator's weirdness. Best to figure the values out before attaching the launch base.

[610yesnolovely]

15 hours ago, AlphaMensae said:

Probably due to the stock calculator's weirdness. Best to figure the values out before attaching the launch base.

I've had this issue: Kerbal Engineer still reports the right values, but stock dV didn't on a rocket with a probe core as root, and a base/tower/umbilicals. I removed the base, tower, etc, and used without (which of course was fine), then later re-added and then it worked, which doesn't make sense unless I'd accidentally mis-rooted.

So the stock dV code runs from the root down each parent/child chain to calculate dV and I'm guessing something about launch bases causes an exception which aborts the computation? If so then making sure these parts are after any and all engines might be enough:

Root -> Stage 2 -> Stage 1 -> Stage 0 -> Base

What about this configuration:

Stage 2 <- Root -> Stage 1 -> Stage 0 -> Base

Ie. the root part has two parent/child chains (Stage 2 is "above" the root physically), but it only assigns the dV if it can process all the stages, but it sees "Base" first because it follows that chain first from the "Root" (down physically).

Edited December 2, 2021 by 610yesnolovely

[OrbitalManeuvers]

43 minutes ago, 610yesnolovely said:

What about this configuration:

In my experience, there are certain concessions you have to make in order to always have correct readouts from KSP's and KER's dV readouts. One of them is to have no engines/tanks above the root part, but even then it's still possible with some fiddling, like setting engine thrust to 0 above your root part. But imho, it's "better" to just make the topmost probe be the root part while you are in the VAB if you want full cooperation from dV tools.

[AlphaMensae]

After a hiatus partly caused by burnout and lack of interest, I've resumed work on the Delta IV Launch Stand.  One stumbling block was the hold-down posts, but the time off let me realize a solution, partly based on the real ones, and the rest being my own invention, since they have to be adjustable.  Since I can't find any images of the interior of the actual stand, I'm just doing my own thing. The same applies to the structural details of the stand; I've got the general overall shape sorta like the real one, the details will take cues from my other stands and be my own ideas.

This will make the rest of the modeling much easier, as I have zero interest in making a fully accurate version, which is too complex and caused the burnout in the first place.

[AlphaMensae]

With a burst of activity, the Delta IV Launch Stand is mostly done, barring any late detail tweaks, and putting in proper colliders and making the deploy limit animations. Here it is all configured for the BDB Delta IV:

Edited December 19, 2021 by AlphaMensae

[Zelda]

That looks great!

[Jacktical]

7 hours ago, AlphaMensae said:

With a burst of activity, the Delta IV Launch Stand is mostly done, barring any late detail tweaks, and putting in proper colliders and making the deploy limit animations. Here it is all configured for the BDB Delta IV:

Looks amazing

[flart]

Does General swing Arms on staging event always retracted Left, even if the Arm Style is "Side Umbilical Left"?
 

[AlphaMensae]

1 hour ago, flart said:

Does General swing Arms on staging event always retracted Left, even if the Arm Style is "Side Umbilical Left"?
 

Yes, staging the retraction only works in the default direction; Staged Animation only works with one animation.

To retract the arm(s) in the other direction, you have to use an action group.

[AlphaMensae]

The new Delta IV Launch Stand is all done and now on the master branch of the Modular Launch Pads GitHub.

A little demo video, it starts with the BDB Delta IV Heavy, which the stand just snaps right onto the extra attach node below the RS-68 and is all set up for, then shows adapting the stand for 2.5m tanks:

 

[AlphaMensae]

Updated the stand .cfg on the GitHub to add a switch to turn off the clamp columns when the stand is rotated 90 degrees.  Just forgot about it  

[OrbitalManeuvers]

Been excitedly waiting for the Delta IV Heavy launch stand to film a little project. Here's a test render of the intro...

Spoiler

 

 

[AlphaMensae]

I'm actually going to make the Delta IV Fixed Service Tower (the one with the arms) from scratch after all.  Looked at more images and studied the tower more closely, and realized it is not as complex as I had thought.  Basically it can be boiled down to a large square core (about 6.2m I've set it as) with huge trusses, with one side fully paneled and another side half-paneled, plus the trusswork extension in the corner that mounts the arms.

It's going to be a single-part tower with a few height variants, though with the tower sections being 6m high there won't be many. It's pretty much going to be Delta IV-specific with only three arm attach nodes.

[AlphaMensae]

My plans for the Delta IV tower swing arms have changed. Originally I had planned them to have deploy limit sliders to adjust the angle amount and the retaction distance, but then remembered that Staged Animation uses a different animation than ModuleAnimateGeneric(Extra), and that the latter's deploy limit settings do not apply. So I'm going to have to set the arms in the real-life angle (or close to it) as the default and which will be used by Staged Animation to prevent problems. I'm probably going to have to eliminate the angle deploy limits, except for the upper (fairing) arm's vertical angle, which is separate from the horizontal angle and retraction animation.

In short, the Delta IV arms are going to set up for a specific angle, which will limit the tower placement. The arms will still have adjustable length, that does not affect Staged Animation.

[BlackDinoShadows]

AlphaMensae can you add the europeen launch pad with the mod KNES

An exemple for the launch pad

Ariane 4,5,6

Thor

Diamond 1 , Europa , and more

 

 

Edited December 23, 2021 by BlackDinoShadows

[AlphaMensae]

Progress on the Delta IV Service Tower, the core is mostly done, just to have to add the trusswork for the arm mounts. Arms shown are the large general ones as placeholders.

 

[Rakete]

Is this mod compatible with vessels using modded parts? E.g. vehicles using the Near Future Mod parts? 

Does it have incompabilities to visual mods like Waterfall or Spetra etc?.

[Cheesecake]

24 minutes ago, Rakete said:

Is this mod compatible with vessels using modded parts? E.g. vehicles using the Near Future Mod parts? 

Does it have incompabilities to visual mods like Waterfall or Spetra etc?.

This mod is compatible to every mod.
Visual mods don`t have effects to partmods so: no, there are no incompatibilities.