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Kerbin Mini Shuttle

helldiver

By helldiver
in KSP1 Mod Development

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BLUAV8R

BLUAV8R

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after the shuttle is launched will it be possible for the main engines to realign back to 0Ëš or will they remained locked at the 15Ëš angle or so that they are during launch? if not a feature like that in which after the shuttle has reached its optimal Apoapsis and drops the main fuel tank then you could right click on the engines (or use action group) and realign them so that you wont have to aim 15Ëš or so below the maneuver node would be great :) the CSS mod has this issue because I'm lazy with my repetitive launches so i use mechjeb ascent guidance but it aims directly at the node causing the shuttle to want to mess up and spin :P

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DisarmingBaton5

DisarmingBaton5

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after the shuttle is launched will it be possible for the main engines to realign back to 0Ëš or will they remained locked at the 15Ëš angle or so that they are during launch? if not a feature like that in which after the shuttle has reached its optimal Apoapsis and drops the main fuel tank then you could right click on the engines (or use action group) and realign them so that you wont have to aim 15Ëš or so below the maneuver node would be great :) the CSS mod has this issue because I'm lazy with my repetitive launches so i use mechjeb ascent guidance but it aims directly at the node causing the shuttle to want to mess up and spin :P

Once the EFT is jettisoned, I believe you are meant to switch to OMS.

Additionally, can we use default KSP fuel? MFS is something I don't want to have to deal with, and others have expressed lack of interest as well.

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Sapphire

Sapphire

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Once the EFT is jettisoned, I believe you are meant to switch to OMS.

Additionally, can we use default KSP fuel? MFS is something I don't want to have to deal with, and others have expressed lack of interest as well.

Apparently we'll get a version running on stock fuels at a later date after the first release, if they're still going by their original plan.

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ZRM

ZRM

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So is the shuttle still going to use imperial units?

The MFD designed for flying in atmosphere (the HDG mode) will be using imperial units. The mode for space manoeuvring is in metric. You can customise the displays as you see fit by modifying the config files, so no one is forcing you to use the units that come as default.

after the shuttle is launched will it be possible for the main engines to realign back to 0Ëš or will they remained locked at the 15Ëš angle or so that they are during launch? if not a feature like that in which after the shuttle has reached its optimal Apoapsis and drops the main fuel tank then you could right click on the engines (or use action group) and realign them so that you wont have to aim 15Ëš or so below the maneuver node would be great :) the CSS mod has this issue because I'm lazy with my repetitive launches so i use mechjeb ascent guidance but it aims directly at the node causing the shuttle to want to mess up and spin :P

All engines use TT's Thrust Vectoring plugin. With that plugin you can bind action groups to specific angles, and keys for increasing/decreasing the angle. Once you drop the EFT the main engines have no fuel source (they run on H2/O2), so you use the pair of OMS engines (they run on LF/O). These engines need to be tilted to point through the centre of mass, so you still need to aim off-centre.

This mod is still in its first phase, and will not have explicit support for MechJeb. Launch manually and manoeuvre manually. It's not hard, especially with KerbCom Avionics and SAS. In the future I may make it so that the control reference frame rotates with the engines. Be aware that MechJeb doesn't like KerbCom Avionics either. When time allows I will probably come up with my own programmable autopilot system, based on the scripting functionality used to make the MFDs work.

Once the EFT is jettisoned, I believe you are meant to switch to OMS.

Additionally, can we use default KSP fuel? MFS is something I don't want to have to deal with, and others have expressed lack of interest as well.

It is planned to make a stock fuel version after the first release.

By the way, I sent helldiver a copy of the project yesterday, so assuming all goes well there will be some more screenshots soon. I don't have the time to make them myself. Since the last screenshots another MFD, the NAV mode, has been added, as well as some extra small functionality like being able to turn the cockpit lighting on and off and cover/uncover the underside RCS ports.

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helldiver

helldiver

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Javascript is disabled. View full album

Please mouse over for descriptions.

-MFDs are borked currently as ZRM is working on them. In the shots above please ignore the MFDs. The HUD you see is also the old place holder.

Currently the version I have was rather buggy, or perhaps I forgot to install something. Other than that, it was a dream on several counts.

-VAB was a charm. The KSO snapped together really easily. Not too many issues, however you have to rotate the vertical stabilizers 90 degrees in order to get them to snap properly into a V-tail configuration. A Ship file of a fully constructed KSO will be included so you don't have to worry about that of that.

-The KSO itself flew perfectly. This thing wants to fly and with very little skill I was able to glide it four times into a perfect landing.

-HUD VIEW IS JUST ALL SORTS OF AWESOME! My first landing was doing it the old fashion way, external camera. The 2nd and 3rd landings were all done with the HUD view seen above. The 2nd landing I switched to external right after ground effect. The 3rd one was done all from IVA!

The Bad

-The KSO is currently very buggy. Most of the connections are very flimsy, obviously we still have more work to do.

-The vectored engines aren't properly vectoring at first. It required that I fidget with them before they finally started responding.

-RCS Nozzles like the Cargo Bay doors should start retracted. The RCS nozzles required I do an action group to get them to pop inside. Not a big deal, but would be cool if they default to retracted. Just one less thing to worry about before launch.

-I love the landing gear. Players will have to get used to the idea that these landing gear mean business and will blow up your ship if you deploy them while the EFT is still attached. Conversely, the G key didn't work to deploy them. I had to use the mouse to click on the Gear icon to get them to deploy. Not a big deal.

-The KSO has issues sometimes sitting on its nose. It's so perfectly balanced that it can easily tip onto its tail. You have to be careful when coming to a full stop making sure to turn off all RCS/SAS and using the breaks. Always land towards the ocean and on the runway. So far doing this has prevent it from tipping over onto its tail.

-The KSO itself is very fidgety when on the ground. I noticed the entire vehicle being jittery all the pieces shaking. Looked really strange and I suspect it may be collision issues? It isn't that noticeable along the cockpit and cargo bay. But it is very noticeable along the engine bays, the engines, the landing gear, and the control surfaces.

-During launch I had difficulty controlling the vehicle as well as getting into the proper angle for a gravity burn. Once the two LRBs got done the vehicle went into a spin. No RCS effects, so I'm wondering if that is a bug or we forgot.

-Actually, the only time I was able to control the vehicle correct was during the descent flight. During launch the controls are a bit erratic.

Enjoy the shots guys, and please keep in mind it is all still a work in progress.

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ZRM

ZRM

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-MFDs are borked currently as ZRM is working on them. In the shots above please ignore the MFDs. The HUD you see is also the old place holder.

Currently the version I have was rather buggy, or perhaps I forgot to install something. Other than that, it was a dream on several counts.

I must have forgotten to include something in the download or you did not install something. The MFDs work fantastically on my end. You're on Windows, right? (The final thing should work on all platforms, I'm just asking this to narrow the cause of the problem down). Did you check the log?

The Bad

-The KSO is currently very buggy. Most of the connections are very flimsy, obviously we still have more work to do.

-The vectored engines aren't properly vectoring at first. It required that I fidget with them before they finally started responding.

-RCS Nozzles like the Cargo Bay doors should start retracted. The RCS nozzles required I do an action group to get them to pop inside. Not a big deal, but would be cool if they default to retracted. Just one less thing to worry about before launch.

-I love the landing gear. Players will have to get used to the idea that these landing gear mean business and will blow up your ship if you deploy them while the EFT is still attached. Conversely, the G key didn't work to deploy them. I had to use the mouse to click on the Gear icon to get them to deploy. Not a big deal.

-The KSO has issues sometimes sitting on its nose. It's so perfectly balanced that it can easily tip onto its tail. You have to be careful when coming to a full stop making sure to turn off all RCS/SAS and using the breaks. Always land towards the ocean and on the runway. So far doing this has prevent it from tipping over onto its tail.

-The KSO itself is very fidgety when on the ground. I noticed the entire vehicle being jittery all the pieces shaking. Looked really strange and I suspect it may be collision issues? It isn't that noticeable along the cockpit and cargo bay. But it is very noticeable along the engine bays, the engines, the landing gear, and the control surfaces.

-During launch I had difficulty controlling the vehicle as well as getting into the proper angle for a gravity burn. Once the two LRBs got done the vehicle went into a spin. No RCS effects, so I'm wondering if that is a bug or we forgot.

-Actually, the only time I was able to control the vehicle correct was during the descent flight. During launch the controls are a bit erratic.

Enjoy the shots guys, and please keep in mind it is all still a work in progress.

  • The connections seem fine to me. Not sure why it would be behaving differently for you. What do you have you maximum physics delta T set to? The lower it is the better the physics should be.
  • Not sure why the thrust vectoring isn't working right for you. Have you looked at the instructions for TT's plugin?
  • Those nozzles do start retracted. I think the version you have is just before I fixed that.
  • The G key should work, but due to a bug in KSP you have to press G a few times before it works, since clearly they only ever tested their code with landing gear that starts deployed.
  • The mass balancing is easy to fix, and will be done once all the fuel is set up.
  • I think the fidgeting may be a problem with your physics settings. It works fine for me.
  • Did you launch with KerbCom Avionics in combined control mode? You do have to fight the SAS a bit, but launching should be relatively straight forward. The one thing to take care of is thrust vectoring angle. After the LRBs detach the angle needs to be made quite steep. What do you mean by no RCS effects? They work for me.

Also, did you try turning on the cockpit lights using the light switch?

Edited by ZRM
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freakazoid13

freakazoid13

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The shuttle reminds me of the X-37

9769c621-7e55-436a-afde-203b173558a9.Full.jpg

Hmm. I'm starting to think this shuttle wont just be for, "Experiments" or "Surveillance".

In all seriousness, Nice job! I look forward to "Surveying" my enemy's with this...I mean...Surveying Kerbin...

Edited by freakazoid13
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helldiver

helldiver

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I must have forgotten to include something in the download or you did not install something. The MFDs work fantastically on my end. You're on Windows, right? (The final thing should work on all platforms, I'm just asking this to narrow the cause of the problem down). Did you check the log?

  • The connections seem fine to me. Not sure why it would be behaving differently for you. What do you have you maximum physics delta T set to? The lower it is the better the physics should be.
  • Not sure why the thrust vectoring isn't working right for you. Have you looked at the instructions for TT's plugin?
  • Those nozzles do start retracted. I think the version you have is just before I fixed that.
  • The G key should work, but due to a bug in KSP you have to press G a few times before it works, since clearly they only ever tested their code with landing gear that starts deployed.
  • The mass balancing is easy to fix, and will be done once all the fuel is set up.
  • I think the fidgeting may be a problem with your physics settings. It works fine for me.
  • Did you launch with KerbCom Avionics in combined control mode? You do have to fight the SAS a bit, but launching should be relatively straight forward. The one thing to take care of is thrust vectoring angle. After the LRBs detach the angle needs to be made quite steep. What do you mean by no RCS effects? They work for me.

Also, did you try turning on the cockpit lights using the light switch?

I did this all last night once I got home, so I know I may have fudged the installation. I'll check today and see what I did wrong.

What is this physics delta T? How do I set that?

Firespitters Plugin; I only installed the Plugin directory of his plugin, (firespitter.dll). I did not install the parts and components that come with it. It that alright? Is that causing an issue?

I've always had and used TT's plugin. It just takes some fidgeting to get the vectoring to work. When I move the control surfaces it also gimbals the engines, is that ok?

Actually the Navball on the panel doesn't work either. So I'm going to assume a bad installation.

I did have the lightswitch on, but not until I got back on the ground. Hehe.

How do I turn on the Log?

Edited by helldiver
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helldiver

helldiver

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Actually nothing in the cockpit works I just realized.

-Throttles aren't moving like they did in your pics.

-None of the instruments work, including analog instruments.

-I'm not seeing any of your plugin overlays

I've never had installation issues before. Touhou and Firespitter mods went in just fine. Going to double check your message to make sure I installed the KSO itself correctly. I'm working on a clean installation of KSP without any mods besides TT and Firespitter mods.

And I'm on Windows.

Dchu1af.jpg

I wasn't able to scroll the log.

I double checked that Mono.CompilerServices DLL was in KSP/KSP_Data/Managed.

Physics Time is set to 1.00 so all the way to the left. The jittery issues seem to have disappeared as well as the flimsiness.

Edited by helldiver
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qnistNAMEERF

qnistNAMEERF

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I hate to ask this at this point of the development, but will you be making an unmanned version, like the x37?

If it isn't set up out of the box, this can easily be done yourself by editting the part config (which is just a text file) of the flight deck. You can specify the minimum crew required to 0 and you would be all set. There is documentation on the ksp wiki on exactly how to do this.

The in-game shots look amazing. Keep up the great work, Helldiver and ZRM.

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