Microsat Question

[twiget]

I like to use SCAN-Sat and Remotech to name a few mods. I'm tired of launching a whole bunch of individual satellites, one for each SCAN-Sat probe I want to use, so I decided to design one mothership that can drop off microsats at the correct orbits. The design was easy enough, I just used Clamp-o-Tron Jr.'s radially on the orbital stage. The idea is when I get to the right altitude, I'll just undock the sat and let it do it's thing.

The problem is that when I test it on the launchpad, I loose all communications with the probe after I decouple it from the mothership. Each microsat has its own OKTO2, a Z-400 battery a 1x6 solar panel and a Communitron 32 for RT along with a sensor for SCAN-Sat use. Anyone know why I'm loosing control when the sats decouple from the mothership? It's not RT. I removed it and I still have this issue.

[Axelord FTW]

You might want to try it with radial decouplers or stacking them vertically and try again. I've never used DockP Jr. to stick sub-probes so there might be something going on with the part tree or something. Try that and report back.

I prefer to stack probes on top of each other. Less horizontal signature.

[Streetwind]

Wasn't there this thing where the OKTO2 has no reaction wheel torque or wasn't working properly in some other way?

Try using a different probe core.

Edited August 21, 2015 by Streetwind

[Red Iron Crown]

Wasn't there this thing where the OKTO2 has no reaction wheel torque or wasn't working properly in some other way?

Try using a different probe core.

It is likely this. OKTO2 has no reaction wheel any more, it makes it seem like control is lost when the sat can't change attitude. Are you unable to light the engines, too?

[LordCorwin]

I had the same problem once, and as said, OKTO2 has no reaction wheel. Either you use a different one or add a reaction wheel.

[Sharpy]

For such a small sat, use a different probe core. Not only you won't need that much energy (OKTO2 is quite power-hungry), you'll get a lower torque. Small reaction wheel on a sat this small provides so much torque that using SAS will send the probe into a mad wobble and drain your batteries really fast. HECS or even old OKTO1 will do fine.

[cantab]

To tell whether your control inputs are being registered or not check the pitch/roll/yaw indicators in the bottom left. If they move when you push the WASDQE keys then your inputs are being registered. As mentioned you might just not have effective control over your craft.

Also don't forget to check your power demands. Some of the ScanSAT sensors are quite electricity-hungry.

[twiget]

You might want to try it with radial decouplers or stacking them vertically and try again. I've never used DockP Jr. to stick sub-probes so there might be something going on with the part tree or something. Try that and report back.

I prefer to stack probes on top of each other. Less horizontal signature.

I just tried radial decouplers, there is no attachment node on them, so I was unable to attach my probes to them.

The reason I chose the docking port Jr. is because there is a lot less ejection force. As a result, the sat will stay in the orbit I put it in.

Wasn't there this thing where the OKTO2 has no reaction wheel torque or wasn't working properly in some other way?

Try using a different probe core.

Tried the OKTO, got the same results.

I'm not actually in orbit yet. I'm just testing the design on the launch pad, so I don't need any reaction torque. When the sat's are coupled to the mothership, I can get the right click menu's and fire action groups with no issues. When I decouple the sat, I loose all control, by which I mean I get no right click menu and action groups don't work anymore.

My plan is to keep the microsats as simple as possible, so they have no engines or fuel, just a probe core, a battery, solar panels, an antenna for RT, and a sensor . I intend to slap them on the side of an LF tank, launch the whole shebang into a polar orbit and drop individual sat's at the altitudes required by their individual sensors.

I just plopped a microsat on the launchpad all by itself and I had no problem with the right click menus or action groups. I remember back in v0.9 there was a docking bug where docking or undocking a craft would cause you to loose control of that craft. I thought that was resolved with v1.0. Maybe it wasn't?

[Windspren]

This is what kills every RT probe: Did you open the antenna first?

[twiget]

This is what kills every RT probe: Did you open the antenna first?

Lol, yes. I've learned that lesson well. Deploying the antenna's is action group #1, before I even attempt to decouple the microsats.

I actually figured out the problem. When I decouple the microsat from the mothership it becomes it's own little vessel (duh!). All I have to do is switch from the mothership to the microsat and I'm good to go.

[Norcalplanner]

Stacking them vertically using docking port jrs. works really well. That way each satellite has a docking port which can redock to a larger craft at a future date, be refueled, etc. I'll launch two to four small sats that way behind a single fairing.

[Axelord FTW]

Okay, I had this very problem happen to me a few times in the last few days. I don't know what causes it but I get no control over probes until I go back to the command center - > Vessel Radar Thingamajig - > fly the new probe.

Try that out.

[jwenting]

Here's the way I do it, and it works great. Mind this is seriously modded (scansat, mechjeb, antennarange, spacey, near future everything, and then some), I used tweakscale to make some parts smaller but you don't need to do that (you'd just get a larger fairing otherwise).

Get into a 255km polar orbit, release top one. All sensors will have ideal range. Then change to a 755km polar orbit and release the bottom one. Its sensors will have ideal range there. Wouldn't even need engines and fuel on the probes themselves, but having it allows me to fine tune things if needed.