Rotatron-Powered Aircraft Challenge

[Excalibur]

http://youtu.be/0tAJGTaX25E

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Rotatron-Powered Aircraft Challenge

Using only Damned Robotics\' rotatron create a flyable aircraft. Can be an aeroplane, helicopter, autogyro or anything you can dream of.

There are two simple rules;

Editing of .cfg files is allowed but only for the rotatron part itself.

Thrust can be generated by utilising the rotatron part only. RCS is allowed, though solely for control. It cannot contribute a significant fraction of the vehicle\'s total thrust.

Apart from that anything goes.

Scoring

Entries will be judged by myself in a subjective manner. Three categories contain seven points each, for a maximum of twenty-one.

Control - How much influence the pilot has over the craft\'s direction and velocity. Agility is also taken into account.

Style - How badass I judge the vehicle to be. Does it carry weaponry? Does it look cool?

Danger - How close the vehicle is to ripping itself apart during operation, without actually doing so.

Entries can be made by posting at least one screenshot and .craft file. Mods used must be listed in comprehensive detail as must the details of the .cfg edit. This is because I will fly the craft personally during the judging process.

Entries:

lereldarion\'s Tilt Rotor

Not as difficult to fly as first expected, the Tilt Rotor actually has a good measure of control, especially during level flight. Landings are difficult however with roughly a 40% success rate. Also noted that this craft has a penchant for skimming the ground with it\'s rotor tips just inches above the ground - this coupled with the difficulties experienced during landing make for a decent danger rating. Overall an excellent craft, I discovered that if the tips of the rotors are removed (generally happens by trying to cut the KSC\'s grass) that the aircraft can accelerate well past 150m/s in level flight. Assume this is some manifestation of the infinite glide bug.

Control: 5

Style: 4

Danger: 6

Total: 16

EDIT: As requested please find attached an example .cfg file for the rotatron. This is the configuration used in the video above. As you can see I\'ve increased the rotation speed from the stock 20 to 500. I also changed the angular drag value to 0.2, but to be honest I don\'t think this parameter is linked to the rotational action itself. Didn\'t seem to do anything.

[TouhouTorpedo]

Funny, I was just trying this yesterday (but didn\'t know about the ability to edit rotatrons speed) so I was just piling lots of rotatrons on top of each other.

...Then span around in circles and exploded because I didn\'t put anything to counter the torque on (or counterrotate as you\'d done, but then if you use standard speed that a loooot of rotatrons)

[GROOV3ST3R]

Challenge Accepted

[Tim_Barrett]

Could you include details on how to properly change the .cfg\'s as well? I remember trying it long ago but didn\'t come out as expected.

[Excalibur]

Could you include details on how to properly change the .cfg\'s as well? I remember trying it long ago but didn\'t come out as expected.

I\'ve updated the OP Tim. I think 500 is the fastest I\'ve gotten away with as far as rotate speed is concerned. Anything much more than that tends to twist and tear itself apart. These things seem to have basically infinite torque!

[keptin]

I\'ve posted this one a few times, so it\'s about time I make a new one. It doesn\'t meet the rules of this challenge with its jet at the rear, but it gives a good idea of what can be done with rotatrons.

Flight vid: http://youtu.be/5e4j0fivBgQ?hd=1

[Excalibur]

Must admit I\'ve seen that craft before keptin. She\'s certainly a beauty! Must have taken quite a while to put her together!

[GROOV3ST3R]

Infinite torque, yes. But whenever I put more than 2 wings per blade it starts spazzing out, rotatron itself looks like it has detached and it floating all over the place but it isn\'t because it\'s still attached (somehow). Hmm, how do I get round this issue? The spazzing motion pretty much kills all possibility of control or flight - and in-flight the thing becomes unbalanced... This is more difficult than I have thought.

[Excalibur]

Infinite torque, yes. But whenever I put more than 2 wings per blade it starts spazzing out, rotatron itself looks like it has detached and it floating all over the place but it isn\'t because it\'s still attached (somehow). Hmm, how do I get round this issue? The spazzing motion pretty much kills all possibility of control or flight - and in-flight the thing becomes unbalanced... This is more difficult than I have thought.

It\'s fiendishly hard - partly why I copped out and made a simple whirly thing. Also to leave the road open for the challengers...

What speed rotational values are you using in your .cfg edits? I found that anything too high would result in the problems you seem to be having. 500 worked well for the Infernal Machine but I had to strut the f**k out of it to keep that insane torque in check. If you watch carefully in the video I posted at around 1:23 you can see it very nearly tears itself apart!

[GROOV3ST3R]

I can see that it was really close to spazzing out but what I meant was without any rotation, it is able to just start shuddering all over the place for no reason whatsoever. My keyrotatespeed is 500 - 200 works also but only with very large fan-like contraptions. I tried modelling one on the same principle you have made the Infernal Machine but after a while I gave up since it was infinitely difficult to get any balance out of that thing. Not even RCS thrusters mounted on blades helped.

Its back to the drawing board for me unless I can harness/defeat the shuddering issue.

[lereldarion]

I was already trying this sort of things when I saw the challenge. I mostly tried to make propeller driven planes, using the rotatron as the motor for the propeller. It wasn\'t successful, because the propellers had to be placed on an horizontal axis, and thus had a limited radius (to avoid hitting the runway). So I needed ridiculously hight rotation speed to accellerate, which always destroyed the plane.

I then tried another approach : a tilt-rotor plane. It uses two large rotor which are initially on a vertical axis (no limited radius problem), starts flying like an helicopter and then rotate the rotor to behave like a plane.

Ready to go !

Flying like a plane...

Performing standard plane banked turn...

Rough landing, but Desfurt is alive !

In helicopter mode, the craft is hardly controllable, so its basically 'trying to stay aloft until rotor has been rotated'. In plane mode it flies at ~25m/s, and is relatively stable. Landing is the real problem : helicopter mode is uncontrollable and impossible to land with this huge propeller blades. The best solution seems to be gliding unpowered in helicopter mode, but these huge blades made of wing parts disturb low speed gliding, often resulting in crash (but with the new explosion system in 0.16, and no fuel, the crew often survives ).

I use a 300 rotation speed, but as I also needed low speed rotatrons for rotor tilting, so I duplicated the part and edited the copy (see attachement). Sometimes the craft seems to be stuck on the ground and won\'t take off, I don\'t know why, going back and forth to the hangar usually correct the problem.

Enjoy it !

[Sky Visitor]

I just kinda stared at this in awe because I haven\'t even gotten a chance to play around with all the new parts yet. Many helicopters will be attempted; many Kerbals will be slain.

[Excalibur]

I was already trying this sort of things when I saw the challenge. I mostly tried to make propeller driven planes, using the rotatron as the motor for the propeller. It wasn\'t successful, because the propellers had to be placed on an horizontal axis, and thus had a limited radius (to avoid hitting the runway). So I needed ridiculously hight rotation speed to accellerate, which always destroyed the plane.

I then tried another approach : a tilt-rotor plane. It uses two large rotor which are initially on a vertical axis (no limited radius problem), starts flying like an helicopter and then rotate the rotor to behave like a plane.

Ready to go !

Flying like a plane...

Performing standard plane banked turn...

Rough landing, but Desfurt is alive !

In helicopter mode, the craft is hardly controllable, so its basically 'trying to stay aloft until rotor has been rotated'. In plane mode it flies at ~25m/s, and is relatively stable. Landing is the real problem : helicopter mode is uncontrollable and impossible to land with this huge propeller blades. The best solution seems to be gliding unpowered in helicopter mode, but these huge blades made of wing parts disturb low speed gliding, often resulting in crash (but with the new explosion system in 0.16, and no fuel, the crew often survives ).

I use a 300 rotation speed, but as I also needed low speed rotatrons for rotor tilting, so I duplicated the part and edited the copy (see attachement). Sometimes the craft seems to be stuck on the ground and won\'t take off, I don\'t know why, going back and forth to the hangar usually correct the problem.

Enjoy it !

Had a good bash in your design mate. Updated the OP with you score. Impressive design and not as hard to control as you mentioned! Not easy though either. ;P

Thanks for your entry!