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[0.90] LazTek SpaceX Launch, Exploration, Colonial Transporter & Historic mods (1/25/14)


LazarusLuan

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Will you also be making the winged Dragon trunk they showcased? It seems to be an interesting concept, the whole trunk is wrapped in solar cells. Might be hard to do as one part in KSP, but probably worth a try.

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Will you also be making the winged Dragon trunk they showcased? It seems to be an interesting concept, the whole trunk is wrapped in solar cells. Might be hard to do as one part in KSP, but probably worth a try.

Yes, a couple of days from now - and the solar panels will be an attachable "skin" for 2.5-meter fuselages, which will allow users to decide between non-retractable or retractable solar panels (I have new covered, retractable solar panel arrays I created for my upcoming Mars Colonial Transporter that I've miniaturized for use as an alternative solar array for the Dragon.

I was considering broadcasting a Twitch stream while building the new trunk if there's anyone interested in watching me make it.

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Great work you doing here. Maybe you can do the Hydra concept in the future? :)

http://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/t_original/mlfmazceyzemutssewbc.jpg

I don't think this really has anything to do with SpaceX - it's a concept vehicle someone made that they put SpaceX Logos on and posted up to Reddit a little while back. I do have my concept of the Mars Colonial Transporter coming up shorty, which holds over 100 passengers...

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Hey Laz, would it be possible to transform your other Dragon Pod into the cargo version and then use the Dragon V2 as the passenger version?

Yes - I think this will be the best path for what I've already created, and the possibility of having to do so when the actual Dragon V2 was unveiled was why I decided to make the engines detachable. Since we have no cargo to move in KSP, I'm setting it up to transport fuel and work like the current science lab (except without needing to be manned), so it can attach to a space station and clean and reset science experiments.

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Bravo, sir. I watched the video over breakfast this morning. It's prettymuch what I expected from SpaceX - functional, simple and pretty cool looking :D

Is this going to be incorporated with the Heavy Lift update?

I'm going to release each part of the new Dragon V2 craft here in the forums as I finish them for everyone to test and play with and will put everything into the next update for the SpaceX Launch pack that I'll put up on the new Spaceport/Curse when it's completed. The Super Heavy Lift pack is separate and will be out shortly.

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I was considering broadcasting a Twitch stream while building the new trunk if there's anyone interested in watching me make it.

What is your twitch ID so that I can follow your channel if you decide to broadcast the build? Would definitely be something I would like to check out.

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Yes - I think this will be the best path for what I've already created, and the possibility of having to do so when the actual Dragon V2 was unveiled was why I decided to make the engines detachable. Since we have no cargo to move in KSP, I'm setting it up to transport fuel and work like the current science lab (except without needing to be manned), so it can attach to a space station and clean and reset science experiments.

That's great to hear. Keep up the good work! Looking forward to the new releases as they come.

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I was considering broadcasting a Twitch stream while building the new trunk if there's anyone interested in watching me make it.

I'm definitely interested in it so I could learn something new.

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So now that you're configuring the RCS... Do you understand how it's supposed to work? It looks to me like the roll/sideways translation thrusters will push the Dragon up and that some of the up-facing engines will have to fire just to counteract that. I can't figure out why they chose to do it this way.

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So now that you're configuring the RCS... Do you understand how it's supposed to work? It looks to me like the roll/sideways translation thrusters will push the Dragon up and that some of the up-facing engines will have to fire just to counteract that. I can't figure out why they chose to do it this way.

They are rocket scientists. I'm sure they know what they are doing. :)

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So now that you're configuring the RCS... Do you understand how it's supposed to work? It looks to me like the roll/sideways translation thrusters will push the Dragon up and that some of the up-facing engines will have to fire just to counteract that. I can't figure out why they chose to do it this way.

Good question - I don't know why they changed the RCS either. After extensive testing of my Dragon V2 ship in KSP today, I've discovered that the RCS simply won't work with the nozzles facing in the particular directions indicated by the unveiling video or the demo animation, so I'm still working on that.

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Good question - I don't know why they changed the RCS either. After extensive testing of my Dragon V2 ship in KSP today, I've discovered that the RCS simply won't work with the nozzles facing in the particular directions indicated by the unveiling video or the demo animation, so I'm still working on that.

FWIW...Where exactly have you put the thrusters? From the pictures/video I've seen, there are the 3 which I've seen you modeled...noting though, and not sure how you've done yours that the one that is facing more horizontal is actually firing towards the SuperDraco pods...like I said though, not sure which way you did yours. I've also seen there are 1 more Draco on the other side of each SuperDraco pod. For a total of at least 16 Dracos. There MIGHT be two more placed at approximately 90 and 270 degrees towards the top as well, that would be 18, which would match what V1 had.

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I cannot tell from the model you've done, but I'm sure you've seen this. But just in case, it does appear to me that there are actually 18 dracos for the system, just as RedAV8R suggested.

68.019.560

The set of thrusters on the sides of the SuperDraco fairings, could be configured for a one up, one down port direction if that would provide a more balanced system? Not trying to second guess, just help out. Cheers.

Edited by Midanthrope
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[snip]... For a total of at least 16 Dracos. There MIGHT be two more placed at approximately 90 and 270 degrees towards the top as well, that would be 18, which would match what V1 had.

Another thing that's strange to me is the number of up-pointed thrusters. V1 had one in each quad plus the two spares, for 6/18 thrusters. V2 has one in each triplet, plus the one on the opposite side of each nacelle, plus the two up top, for 10/18 thrusters. This leaves only 8 to point other directions, down from 12.

Maybe they wanted the extra axial redundancy for safety purposes, and then the weird angles for the other 8 is for some kind of non-obvious control scheme that can make do with fewer thrusters. Maybe there are some combinations of thrusters that give zero net impulse and rotate it along unusual axes.

It still seems like sideways translation would be an issue, particularly on docking approach. Maybe that's what the two on top are for, because they don't look like they're pointing straight up, but out a bit so the exhaust would miss the station.

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Ok - figured it out, my axes were off and it doesn't take much to mess it up. SpaceX has incorporated a very clever way of reducing the number of thrusters in each "pod" by using three axes instead of four. Continuing to test and refine in KSP:

screenshot23a.png

screenshot24a.png

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FWIW...Where exactly have you put the thrusters? From the pictures/video I've seen, there are the 3 which I've seen you modeled...noting though, and not sure how you've done yours that the one that is facing more horizontal is actually firing towards the SuperDraco pods...like I said though, not sure which way you did yours. I've also seen there are 1 more Draco on the other side of each SuperDraco pod. For a total of at least 16 Dracos. There MIGHT be two more placed at approximately 90 and 270 degrees towards the top as well, that would be 18, which would match what V1 had.

There appears to be a total of 18 RCS thrusters. Ten involve the -Z vector: two on port and starboard near the nose which are 100% dedicated to the -Z vector, four on port and starboard between the engine nacelles that split thrust between the -Z, -X, -Y, +X and +Y vectors and four on port and starboard on the outside of the two nacelles also splitting thrust between the -Z, -X, -Y, +X and +Y vectors. The remaining eight thrusters each involve the +Z vector, with varying degrees of involvement with the -X, -Y, +X and +Y vectors depending on placement. Four of these thrusters are involved in providing rotation, but this can't be seen in KSP due to the current requirement of a surface mounted RCS for roll.

This new configuration seems to provide three things: 1. Increased power for thrusting away from a docking port, perhaps required for emergencies. 2. Increased power for deorbiting, providing a higher degree of accuracy for placement of atmospheric reentry. 3. Increases potential thrust in each vector between 30 and 100 percent due to the involvement of two or more thrusters with each translation.

Edited by LazarusLuan
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There appears to be a total of 18 RCS thrusters. Ten involve the -Z vector: two on port and starboard near the nose which are 100% dedicated to the -Z vector, four on port and starboard between the engine nacelles that split thrust between the -Z, -X, -Y, +Z and +Y vectors and four on port and starboard on the outside of the two nacelles also splitting thrust between the -Z, -X, -Y, +Z and +Y vectors. The remaining eight thrusters each involve the +Z vector, with varying degrees of involvement with the -X, -Y, +X and +Y vectors depending on placement. Four of these thrusters are involved in providing rotation, but this can't be seen in KSP due to the current requirement of a surface mounted RCS for roll.

This new configuration seems to provide three things: 1. Increased power for thrusting away from a docking port, perhaps required for emergencies. 2. Increased power for deorbiting, providing a higher degree of accuracy for placement of atmospheric reentry. 3. Increases potential thrust in each vector between 30 and 100 percent due to the involvement of two or more thrusters with each translation.

I know you don't care to add 3rd party module dependencies but I do ask you include all the real transforms for the possibly of those who use RSS and RO to have good accurate control. I know you did so on V1 pod, just asking you do the same on V2. Otherwise it appears what you've seen and modeled match what I see. Thank you.

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