Kerbodyne Plus Development Thread

[Siphonophore]

1 minute ago, Bonus Eventus said:

I think this could make a good door (it actually is for hangars). This is a SpaceX facility at Cape Canaveral.

 

That's a really clever idea to use for a T404 door - but why not make it open in two?

Oh, and I appreciate your thoughts on this if you don't take it, but why not make a part that lets T404 parts be pressurized, such as an endcap/opening airlock door?

[Bonus Eventus]

1 minute ago, AJTheMighty said:

That's a really clever idea to use for a T404 door - but why not make it open in two?

Oh, and I appreciate your thoughts on this if you don't take it, but why not make a part that lets T404 parts be pressurized, such as an endcap/opening airlock door?

Well, I've thought about that a lot, so I'll answer you with a question. What things would you want to store in a pressurized container? 

[Siphonophore]

Just now, Bonus Eventus said:

Well, I've thought about that a lot, so I'll answer you with a question. What things would you want to store in a pressurized container? 

Well for one, besides IRL application of pressurized containers like storing fuel and stuff, if I had a pressurized, hollow T404 separated from the unpressurized T404 hangars by a two-door hydraulic airlock, I think I'd store a custom-made, really elaborate interior inside it complete with seats and separate rooms for some of my Kerbonauts besides the main crew, reminiscent to one of those Bigelow habitats. Plus, it'd allow players a bit more freedom in making giant starships with enough habitation space for your intrepid crew to goof around inside, and for that T404 airlock bulkhead - it's supposed to link T404 modules and make them look sturdier and not look fragile with some of those frames exposed.

Also, are you plannin on overhauling the T404 crew tank's model to fit the new T404 system? And could you try to show me a list of planned T202 modules, like that deployable antenna I suggested a while ago?

Plus, decided on a potential centrifuge design? I think the centrifuge design could be at least 15m wide, and supported by the same piston things on the (current) T404 to 3.75m adapter - read that artificial gravity article from Atomic Rockets I posted way back - oh, and have ya made a new T404 to T202 adapter?

Also, I know this is a little off-the-top here, but have you thought about a T101 truss system that's hexagonal in shape and functions the same as the T202 truss? And here's a little suggestion; why not make the xenon tanks inside that T202 xenon tank you were talking about spherical and in a row of at least 2-3-what fits your preference? And I don't think reducing the ISP of the ELFT engine is a good idea, because I've seen concepts of some interplanetary ships - most of em have one engine, and they can travel really far - think about the Hermes from The Martian - it has only one engine, but it travels to Mars while consuming a fairly low amount of fuel.

Sorry for all the techno-babble, but it's the best I can do. I'm really looking forward to K+ 1.1 by the way!

[Bonus Eventus]

19 minutes ago, AJTheMighty said:

Well for one, besides IRL application of pressurized containers like storing fuel and stuff, if I had a pressurized, hollow T404 separated from the unpressurized T404 hangars by a two-door hydraulic airlock, I think I'd store a custom-made, really elaborate interior inside it complete with seats and separate rooms for some of my Kerbonauts besides the main crew, reminiscent to one of those Bigelow habitats. Plus, it'd allow players a bit more freedom in making giant starships with enough habitation space for your intrepid crew to goof around inside, and for that T404 airlock bulkhead - it's supposed to link T404 modules and make them look sturdier and not look fragile with some of those frames exposed.

Also, are you plannin on overhauling the T404 crew tank's model to fit the new T404 system? And could you try to show me a list of planned T202 modules, like that deployable antenna I suggested a while ago?

Plus, decided on a potential centrifuge design? I think the centrifuge design could be at least 15m wide, and supported by the same piston things on the (current) T404 to 3.75m adapter - read that artificial gravity article from Atomic Rockets I posted way back - oh, and have ya made a new T404 to T202 adapter?

Also, I know this is a little off-the-top here, but have you thought about a T101 truss system that's hexagonal in shape and functions the same as the T202 truss? And here's a little suggestion; why not make the xenon tanks inside that T202 xenon tank you were talking about spherical and in a row of at least 2-3-what fits your preference? And I don't think reducing the ISP of the ELFT engine is a good idea, because I've seen concepts of some interplanetary ships - most of em have one engine, and they can travel really far - think about the Hermes from The Martian - it has only one engine, but it travels to Mars while consuming a fairly low amount of fuel.

Sorry for all the techno-babble, but it's the best I can do. I'm really looking forward to K+ 1.1 by the way!

If/When T404 gets overhauled I would like to transition the CM1 to a S6 (7.5m) Hab or several S3 (3.75m) Habs. 

So, the reason for the redesign is to make a more unified structural system, one which makes building stations and motherships straight-forward and fun. 

In terms of ship design I'll borrow the terminology of Atomic Rockets.

• T202 makes up the spine of the spacecraft. It's there to support most of the ship's critical functions.
• T202 modules for comms, science equipment, electrical, small unpressurized storage.
• T404 very large unpressurized storage, for large vehicle payloads.
• Extra structural supports for thrust frames and extra payload attachments that work with T202 and T404
• S6 and S3 pressurized modules for kerbals, fuel, etc.
• Engines
• Electrical generators

 

Edited April 21, 2016 by Bonus Eventus

[DStaal]

22 hours ago, Bonus Eventus said:

2) This is why I gave the behemoth engine cluster a high gimbal range of 8 and response speed of 8. For comparison the "Vector" engine has a gimbal range of 10.5 and a response speed of 8. When I tested the system with a 1000 ton payload (6 behemoth asparagus using radial decouplers), it performed as expected with no fins. I'll do some tests. Can you send me a screen of your craft in the VAB so I can see what your setup was? 

Sorry, forgot to grab it in the VAB, will on the launchpad do?

(http://magehandbook.com/screenshot15.png)

Yes, the reaction wheel is way out of place - probably a factor in it's wobbling - but I didn't really have anything else that fit the form factor.  (And the smaller version that I have that lifts a 3.75 Kontainer has it's reaction wheels just above the container, without issue.)  I could add more fins, of course, but it'd start to look a bit odd.  (And I'm not sure how many I'd need - this already has 8 main fins and 8 grid fins...)

Also, I mentioned my Duna-transfer vehicle, so I'll show it off as well (I hope these images work...), since it relies quite a bit on this parts pack:

(http://magehandbook.com/screenshot11.png)

It's envisioned as a reusable interplanetary transport vehicle - It's using USI's FTT pack for a lot of parts, including the cargo holders.  It's configured to carry up to 8 dropships, satellites, cargopods, etc.  The intial configuration includes a comm net for the Duna system (to go with AntennaRange), a ScanSat tri-level scanner, an Orbital Logistics satellite (sticking out to the left - it doesn't actually fit in the cargo holder), an orbital science pack, a lander, an autonomous science rover (and lander), and a MKS Pioneer module.  Most of those will be left behind in the Duna system.

This was a prototype build, not intended to be launched, just built to make sure all systems worked as intended.  The first production version is currently being constructed in orbit using EL.

Edited April 21, 2016 by DStaal
Adding links to screenshots, in case the embed doesn't work.

[Bonus Eventus]

25 minutes ago, DStaal said:

Sorry, forgot to grab it in the VAB, will on the launchpad do?

(http://magehandbook.com/screenshot15.png)

Yes, the reaction wheel is way out of place - probably a factor in it's wobbling - but I didn't really have anything else that fit the form factor.  (And the smaller version that I have that lifts a 3.75 Kontainer has it's reaction wheels just above the container, without issue.)  I could add more fins, of course, but it'd start to look a bit odd.  (And I'm not sure how many I'd need - this already has 8 main fins and 8 grid fins...)

Also, I mentioned my Duna-transfer vehicle, so I'll show it off as well (I hope these images work...), since it relies quite a bit on this parts pack:

(http://magehandbook.com/screenshot11.png)

It's envisioned as a reusable interplanetary transport vehicle - It's using USI's FTT pack for a lot of parts, including the cargo holders.  It's configured to carry up to 8 dropships, satellites, cargopods, etc.  The intial configuration includes a comm net for the Duna system (to go with AntennaRange), a ScanSat tri-level scanner, an Orbital Logistics satellite (sticking out to the left - it doesn't actually fit in the cargo holder), an orbital science pack, a lander, an autonomous science rover (and lander), and a MKS Pioneer module.  Most of those will be left behind in the Duna system.

This was a prototype build, not intended to be launched, just built to make sure all systems worked as intended.  The first production version is currently being constructed in orbit using EL.

Thanks for taking the time to post these images and explain your craft's design (looks pretty awesome btw). This is very helpful to me, because I know how I would build with K+ but it's hard to imagine what other people are trying to accomplish. The new decouplers are very strong. So strong in some configurations you won't need struts. I'll see about adding some big fins soon.

[DStaal]

Just wanted to say: There are no struts in the first ship in my post.  There are some fuel lines, however.  The transport ship has a fair amount of struts, as I'm not sure how strong all the parts and connections are.  (And the two sections of 'let's do four fuselages for a bit, then back to one' would be great in real life, but I'm not so sure that they'll work as well in KSP.  So I strutted fairly heavily through there.)

Glad you like the design.  I spent entirely to much time on it.    (About two weeks of gameplay...)

[Kerenatus]

8 hours ago, Bonus Eventus said:

I think this could make a good door (it actually is for hangars). This is a SpaceX facility at Cape Canaveral.

 

A shielded version of this would be great.

[Bonus Eventus]

 

Here's where I am with the fission reactor. The connection at the bottom will have a fairing (similar to Soyuz). Still not sure about the top stack connector details, might want to add some pipes. I'm not that sure, because it will most likely be covered up 90% of the time. 

Puts out 2,250 EC/s. In the next stable update (1.075) Leviathan Solar Wings will generate 275 EC/s (Thanks to @Table for suggesting this!) so 4 of them will generate half the EC required for full thrust from the ELF Plasma Engine. The ELF needs 2000 ec/s to run at full throttle. The tradeoff ihen is, the fission generator is much heavier and takes up more space than the Leviathans (when folded anyways haha) and it's less expensive than 8 Leviathan Solar Wings.

Here are the current stats on the ELF (Thanks to @cy4n for his input on this)

• Max Thrust (ASL) - 2.667kn 
• Max Thrust (Vac)- 160kn
• ISP - 100 (ASL) - 6000 (Vac)
• Electric Charge - 2000/sec. Max
• Xenon Gas - 27.192/sec. Max
• Mas: 2t

 

Since it's taking me longer than expected to finish 1.1, I've decided to do what Squad does and break up this big update into smaller ones. The next update will be 1.075 and it will probably be out Tomorrow night at the earliest. 

Included in 1.075:

• Added part ELF Plasma Engine.
• Added part SMR Sodium Fast Cooled Reactor
• Bug fix for XL-6 Landing Strut (when in the start extended state, craft would spawn partly in the ground)
• Bug fix fix for S6 Radial Decoupler (surface attachment strength was far weaker than it should have been thanks to a typo) (Thanks to @DStaal for reporting it!)
• Bug fix for Kerbodyne S6-94640 Tank (surface attachment strength was weaker than intended)
• Adjustment to Leviathan Solar Wing (EC/s is now 275 instead of 200)
• Adjustment to T202 BA-64 Battery Array (EC/s is now 4000 instead of 6000) 

[Table]

9 minutes ago, Bonus Eventus said:

 

Here's where I am with the fission reactor. The connection at the bottom will have a fairing (similar to Soyuz). Still not sure about the top stack connector details, might want to add some pipes. I'm not that sure, because it will most likely be covered up 90% of the time. 

Puts out 2,250 EC/s. In the next stable update (1.075) Leviathan Solar Wings will generate 275 EC/s (Thanks to @Table for suggesting this!) so 4 of them will generate half the EC required for full thrust from the ELF Plasma Engine. The ELF needs 2000 ec/s to run at full throttle. The tradeoff ihen is, the fission generator is much heavier and takes up more space than the Leviathans (when folded anyways haha) and it's less expensive than 8 Leviathan Solar Wings.

Here are the current stats on the ELF (Thanks to @cy4n for his input on this)

• Max Thrust (ASL) - 2.667kn 
• Max Thrust (Vac)- 160kn
• ISP - 100 (ASL) - 6000 (Vac)
• Electric Charge - 2000/sec. Max
• Xenon Gas - 27.192/sec. Max
• Mas: 2t

 

Since it's taking me longer than expected to finish 1.1, I've decided to do what Squad does and break up this big update into smaller ones. The next update will be 1.075 and it will probably be out Tomorrow night at the earliest. 

Included in 1.075:

• Added part ELF Plasma Engine.
• Added part SMR Sodium Fast Cooled Reactor
• Bug fix for XL-6 Landing Strut (when in the start extended state, craft would spawn partly in the ground)
• Bug fix fix for S6 Radial Decoupler (surface attachment strength was far weaker than it should have been thanks to a typo) (Thanks to @DStaal for reporting it!)
• Bug fix for Kerbodyne S6-94640 Tank (surface attachment strength was weaker than intended)
• Adjustment to Leviathan Solar Wing (EC/s is now 275 instead of 200)
• Adjustment to T202 BA-64 Battery Array (EC/s is now 4000 instead of 6000) 

No problem man!

[Kerenatus]

A sound decision.

[Bonus Eventus]

Updated the end cap.

Here's a shot of the fairing.

Some additional views.

Edited April 22, 2016 by Bonus Eventus

[Siphonophore]

uhh not to ruin everything but isn't update v.1.075 supposed to be out now? It's midnight BTW 

Edited April 23, 2016 by AJTheMighty

[Bonus Eventus]

Sorry, but you'll just have to wait

Still texturing. I want these parts to be extra special.

Also, @AJTheMighty I said Friday at the earliest.

 

Edited April 23, 2016 by Bonus Eventus

[Kerenatus]

1 hour ago, Bonus Eventus said:

Sorry, but you'll just have to wait

Still texturing. I want these parts to be extra special.

Also, @AJTheMighty I said Friday at the earliest.

 

The second one looks really hot! Keep up the nice work.

The battery and that battery-alike generator can't be radially attached to other parts BTW.

[Bonus Eventus]

So long Kerbodyne Plus

Development of Kerbodyne Plus will stop after 1.075. Wait, let me finish (please), Kerbodyne Plus will become a new mod called Mother. This might seem kind of drastic, but it's something I've been thinking about for several weeks. When I started K+ in 2014 I had no intention of making it publicly available. Originally, it was something I made just to deal with part counts on Mac. At the time my Mac couldn't handle mods like B9 without crashing. And being that I've made mods for other games in the past, I just naturally started tinkering with KSP. Anyways, a friend of mine encouraged me to share it with the KSP community. I thought it could be fun to develop a project like this with lots of community input, so I made Kerbodyne Plus Alpha 0.1. At that time there was no specific goals for the project. I came up with the name Kerbodyne Plus, partly because I saw mods use plus in the title (read lazy) and I happened to set each part's manufacturer to Kerbodyne. I had no intentions at the time other than to publish it and see what happens.

As development progressed so did my ideas about what Kerbodyne Plus should be/was meant to be. I thought the mod should have some stated goals, to keep it moving forward. I also thought that the scope of the project should be well defined. I tried to be realistic as to what I could accomplish. That's how I arrived at not supporting other mods (less work) and the general goal of end game parts (open ended).

Fast forward to 2016. With tons of community feedback and learning more about spacecraft design, a vision started to develop. That vision, put simply, is to supply parts that help players build realistic motherships. However, to do that I would need to incorporate/support other life support mods. This conflicts with the stated goals of Kerbodyne Plus. The more I thought about this seeming problem, the more I realized that I had more problems from not incorporating these mods than the imagined work that supporting them would offer. Also, with KSP 1.1 changes to 64 bit Unity 5, performance has increased dramatically, marking a turning point with KSP, where the code is less likely to change drastically.

I know this is a bit unexpected, however I think it's a logical and natural change. I know some of you have wanted this for a while (support other mods pls). And after thinking about it I realized I want it to. I hope everyone who supported/supports Kerbodyne Plus will transition to using Mother, but if not thank you for all your encouragement and support.

Hello Mother

Mother is a mod with a very specific agenda. Make realistic interplanetary motherships. Here's what to expect going forward.

• Parts will be renamed to avoid conflict with Kerbodyne Plus
• New parts will include life support (greenhouses, oxygen tanks, water systems, etc) 
• Parts will support other mods
• Support for KAS
• Support for Community Resources and Tech Tree
• KSPI-E progression
• Module Manager support
• Custom plugins (Centrifuges!)

When will this change happen?

Kerbodyne Plus 1.075 will be released as planned, but instead of releasing Kerbodyne Plus 1.1, Mother 1.0 will be released instead.

To make the new mod, requires me to adjust folder paths hard coded in each cfg file, setup new repositories, setup different gits, so expect delays. Could be weeks could be months, hard to say before I get my hands dirty. 

Mother Dev Thread

TL;DR

• Kerbodyne Plus will become the mod Mother. 
• Changing the name because it will now support community mods and be focused on motherships
• Mother 1.0 will be released instead of Kerbodyne Plus 1.1
• Kerbodyne Plus 1.075 will be released as planed
• Changes won't take place until after 1.075
• Thanks for supporting Kerbodyne Plus! Please support my ongoing efforts with Mother.

Edited October 30, 2016 by Bonus Eventus

[Siphonophore]

4 minutes ago, Bonus Eventus said:

So long Kerbodyne Plus

Development of Kerbodyne Plus will stop after 1.075. Wait, let me finish (please), Kerbodyne Plus will become a new mod called Mother. This might seem kind of drastic, but it's something I've been thinking about for several weeks. When I started K+ in 2014 I had no intention of making it publicly available. Originally, it was something I made just to deal with part counts on Mac. At the time my Mac couldn't handle mods like B9 without crashing. And being that I've made mods for other games in the past, I just naturally started tinkering with KSP. Anyways, a friend of mine encouraged me to share it with the KSP community. I thought it could be fun to develop a project like this with lots of community input, so I made Kerbodyne Plus Alpha 0.1. At that time there was no specific goals for the project. I came up with the name Kerbodyne Plus, partly because I saw mods use plus in the title (read lazy) and I happened to set each part's manufacturer to Kerbodyne. I had no intentions at the time other than to publish it and see what happens.

As development progressed so did my ideas about what Kerbodyne Plus should be/was meant to be. I thought the mod should have some stated goals, to keep it moving forward. I also thought that the scope of the project should be well defined. I tried to be realistic as to what I could accomplish. That's how I arrived at not supporting other mods (less work) and the general goal of end game parts (open ended).

Fast forward to 2016. With tons of community feedback and learning more about spacecraft design, a vision started to develop. That vision, put simply, is to supply parts that help players build realistic motherships. However, to do that I would need to incorporate/support other life support mods. This conflicts with the stated goals of Kerbodyne Plus. The more I thought about this seeming problem, the more I realized that I had more problems from not incorporating these mods than the imagined work that supporting them would offer. Also, with KSP 1.1 changes to 64 bit Unity 5, performance has increased dramatically and marking a turning point with KSP where the code is now much less likely to change.

I know this is a bit unexpected, however I think it's a logical and natural change. I know some of you have wanted this for a while (support other mods pls). And after thinking about it I realized I want it to. I hope everyone who supported/supports Kerbodyne Plus will transition to using Mother, but if not thank you for all your encouragement and support.

Hello Mother

Mother is a mod with a very specific agenda. Make realistic interplanetary motherships. Here's what to expect going forward.

• Parts will be renamed to avoid conflict with Kerbodyne Plus
• Most parts will be included in Mother
• New parts will support major life support mods (greenhouses, oxygen tanks, water systems, etc) 
• Existing parts will be altered to support life support mods
• Support for KAS
• Support for Community Resources and Tech Tree
• KSPI-E progression
• Module Manager support
• Possible custom code/plugins (Centrifuges!)

When will this change happen?

Kerbodyne Plus 1.075 will be released as planned, but instead of releasing Kerbodyne Plus 1.1, Mother 1.0 will be released instead.

To make the new mod, requires me to adjust folder paths hard coded in each cfg file, setup new repositories, setup different gits, so expect delays. Could be weeks could be months, hard to say before I get my hands dirty. 

Mother Dev Thread

TL;DR

• Kerbodyne Plus will become the mod Mother. 
• Changing the name because it will now support community mods and be focused on motherships
• Mother 1.0 will be released instead of Kerbodyne Plus 1.1
• Kerbodyne Plus 1.075 will be released as plans
• Changes won't take place until after 1.075
• Thanks for supporting Kerbodyne Plus! Please support my ongoing efforts with Mother.

Oh, that's too bad KP 1.1 won't existalize, but Mother sounds so cool! I looked at the dev thread, and now that I think of it, I so agree with making a new mod - and when you release Mother, PLEASE, PLEASE keep the Leviathan Solar Wings - they're essential for MOAR POWER!!!!!

Oh, and can I give some part suggestions for Mother?

• A 7.5m foldable heatshield that expands to 30 meters in diameter
• Titanic centrifuge habitat with a counter-rotating flywheel section
• A larger version of the ELF thruster with gimbal (and make the ELF radially attachable too
• A giant storage tank/cargo haul
• ISS-esque robot arm (requires KIS/KAS)
• Giant greenhouse with lots of windows for plenty of light to shine in
• Massive spherical fuel tanks

[Table]

Well the mother thread is open now, some moderator should close this thread,

On 4/23/2016 at 1:33 PM, AJTheMighty said:

Oh, that's too bad KP 1.1 won't existalize, but Mother sounds so cool! I looked at the dev thread, and now that I think of it, I so agree with making a new mod - and when you release Mother, PLEASE, PLEASE keep the Leviathan Solar Wings - they're essential for MOAR POWER!!!!!

Oh, and can I give some part suggestions for Mother?

• A 7.5m foldable heatshield that expands to 30 meters in diameter
• Titanic centrifuge habitat with a counter-rotating flywheel section
• A larger version of the ELF thruster with gimbal (and make the ELF radially attachable too
• A giant storage tank/cargo haul
• ISS-esque robot arm (requires KIS/KAS)
• Giant greenhouse with lots of windows for plenty of light to shine in
• Massive spherical fuel tanks

A greenhouse in space doesn't need windows, it should just be an oxygen garden, it's basically a green house that provides oxygen for the grew.

Good luck to your new mod Bonus!

[Table]

Oh and Bonus, I would love for you to keep the T404 Crew Cabin, and hopefully the T404 & T202 truss systems too.

I don't know about the Behemoth LS, I love it. I hope it goes to the new mod

And @AJTheMighty mentioned a centrifuge, I suggest a design similar to the Hermes Centrifuge but like 9x bigger. You don't have to use firespitter for this, I think there's something called ModuleAnimate.... I forgot the name

Oh, and the heatshield that AJ mentioned, it should be like a shield for traveling at like interstellar speeds, almost like the ISV Venture Star's light sails.

But these are just my suggestions, do whatever you like, or think is great!

[Bonus Eventus]

22 hours ago, Table said:

Oh and Bonus, I would love for you to keep the T404 Crew Cabin, and hopefully the T404 & T202 truss systems too.

I don't know about the Behemoth LS, I love it. I hope it goes to the new mod

And @AJTheMighty mentioned a centrifuge, I suggest a design similar to the Hermes Centrifuge but like 9x bigger. You don't have to use firespitter for this, I think there's something called ModuleAnimate.... I forgot the name

Oh, and the heatshield that AJ mentioned, it should be like a shield for traveling at like interstellar speeds, almost like the ISV Venture Star's light sails.

But these are just my suggestions, do whatever you like, or think is great!

I prefer a modular system that will allow you to build whatever you want.

The texturing of the ELF is done. The emissive came out pretty good. Forgot to model the fairing though, oops!

[LitaAlto]

Will K+/Mother give you some sort of plates you can use to cover the current 7.5m - 3.75 m adapter? Right now there's no solid adapters compatible with the command pod's look and feel, making it harder to realistically build out more complex crew space.

Later I can share pics of some of my craft, built using an earlier version of K+ when there was the solid adapter, to show you what I mean.

[Bonus Eventus]

33 minutes ago, LitaAlto said:

Will K+/Mother give you some sort of plates you can use to cover the current 7.5m - 3.75 m adapter? Right now there's no solid adapters compatible with the command pod's look and feel, making it harder to realistically build out more complex crew space.

Later I can share pics of some of my craft, built using an earlier version of K+ when there was the solid adapter, to show you what I mean.

Yeah, it would be great if you could post some pics!

[Kerenatus]

15 hours ago, Bonus Eventus said:

I prefer a modular system that will allow you to build whatever you want.

The texturing of the ELF is done. The emissive came out pretty good. Forgot to model the fairing though, oops!

The emissive!!!!!!!!!

[Bonus Eventus]

Ka-Bam! Large spherical xenon tanks embedded in a T202 truss, the new T202 F-2 Xe. Decided to add it now to make building an ELF worthy craft a little easier.

Just have to finish the engine shroud, then 1.075 will be done.

[Bonus Eventus]

1.075 is out