Ability to repair solar panels, antennas and radiators.

[NSEP]

Is it possible for engineers to repair breakable parts? Is it a good idea?

[MinimalMinmus]

It's not possible, but honestly a l3/l4 engineer should be able to do it.

[Tex_NL]

Indeed repairing broken panels is not possible. But and engineer can replace them with KIS/KAS.

 

Edited December 18, 2016 by Tex_NL

[Sharpy]

I'm all for adding extra abilities past lvl3. Level 4: repair small radiators and small solar panels. Level 5: repair gigantors and medium and big radiators.

[Tex_NL]

2 minutes ago, Sharpy said:

I'm all for adding extra abilities past lvl3. Level 4: repair small radiators and small solar panels. Level 5: repair gigantors and medium and big radiators.

Sure. But there is damage and then there is completely destroyed. No engineer should be able to fix a panel without spare parts when it is completely MIA.

[Sharpy]

1 minute ago, Tex_NL said:

Sure. But there is damage and then there is completely destroyed. No engineer should be able to fix a panel without spare parts when it is completely MIA.

Provide spare parts?

[Guest]

5 hours ago, Tex_NL said:

Sure. But there is damage and then there is completely destroyed. No engineer should be able to fix a panel without spare parts when it is completely MIA.

Well, we don't have to carry spare tyres around but they can be patched up an infinite number of times. I don't think the devs desire the complexity of supplying a spare parts resource or actual spare parts for the stock game. Still, even if these things were required, at least as far as static solar panels are concerned they can become inoperative while the part remains completely intact and seem like something a Kerbal could fix with some spacetape from the pod as easily as they do for wheels.

Edited December 18, 2016 by Guest

[Martian Emigrant]

We don't carry spares because there is no need to right now.

But.

If the engineers could fix things we could have a "Box-of-spare-parts" in a Cargo/Service bay or even as external load.

My vision:

Vern-level-4-Engineer floating next to the nub of a solar panel. Right click on the nub and select "Repair from spares 3 of 3". Bingo it's fixed.

The size of the "Box-of-spare-parts" could dictate how many things you can fix. You could have several. A docked ship could share/transfer spares.

Small fix 2 thing. Mass 0.5t

Medium fix 3 things. Mass 0.75t

Large fix 5 things. Mass 1.0t

My vision conclusion:

Vern right clicks on a radiator. "No spare available 0 of 3".

 

ME

 

EDIT

Last thought maybe a "Small box" couldn't fix a "Large" radiator

Edited December 18, 2016 by Martian Emigrant

[IWanttobeEVA]

Maybe not a full repair but an L4 or L5 can maybe jury-rig something out of the broken/smashed parts to give "Solar Panel - repaired" that is 25~30% capability of an undamaged one.

No spare parts needed, and you still pay a penalty for killing your solar panel (because it almost always is the result of carelessness).

 

 

[eddiew]

What @Martian Emigrant said, really, although the masses are rather high for the amount of fixes, depending on what's broken. Solar panels weigh almost nothing...

I'd suggest instead that spares be treated like a fuel or ore - you carry N kg, and this allows you to replace parts up to that weight (or maybe you require 50% the weight of the part to repair it). If you replace a 10kg solar panel from your 50kg box of bits, you have 40kg left. Spares would be a fungible commodity, one box of 50kg can fix any part of up to 50kg. Basically it's a tub of nanobots.

Perfect mechanic though, literally just needs to draw spares from whatever the ship can access.

[Tex_NL]

Partial repairs without and full repairs with spare parts would make sense. As long as a partial repair still can be upgraded to a full repair once parts become available.

[TheDestroyer111]

5 hours ago, Tex_NL said:

Sure. But there is damage and then there is completely destroyed. No engineer should be able to fix a panel without spare parts when it is completely MIA.

Solar panels are still attached to the ship after getting broken, this works in the same way as when you deploy a fairing - the part itself is still attached, and even though the detached/broken fairing shells/solar panels still have their own colliders, they aren't parts and can't be switched to, and disappear if you go out of physics range from them.

i h8 u

[Tex_NL]

3 minutes ago, TheDestroyer111 said:

Solar panels are still attached to the ship after getting broken, this works in the same way as when you deploy a fairing - the part itself is still attached, and even though the detached/broken fairing shells/solar panels still have their own colliders, they aren't parts and can't be switched to, and disappear if you go out of physics range from them.

i h8 u

Of course the base of the part is still there but the panels have been ripped off. Whether the ripped off panels do or do not have colliders is besides the point. You understand very well what I meant.

[James Kerman]

Realism issues aside, I think this is balanced by the fact solar and radiator panels do not loose weight when broken off.

[SpaceastronautX]

Well... In sandbox Yes.

[Wjolcz]

[Martian Emigrant]

I knew someone smart could make the "Box-of-spare-parts".

I like that there is a spare battery in there. Everyone need batteries.  If only for the TV-Remote.

I would love to get a better look at the content.

Is that a spool of bailing-wire?  +1

Needs a roll of duct-tape.

 

ME

Edited December 24, 2016 by Martian Emigrant

[Wjolcz]

That toolbox was actually meant to be in one of the past versions but never made it into the game.

[Rath]

On 12/18/2016 at 11:34 PM, String Witch said:

Well, we don't have to carry spare tyres around but they can be patched up an infinite number of times. I don't think the devs desire the complexity of supplying a spare parts resource or actual spare parts for the stock game. Still, even if these things were required, at least as far as static solar panels are concerned they can become inoperative while the part remains completely intact and seem like something a Kerbal could fix with some spacetape from the pod as easily as they do for wheels.

When the wheels are broken part of the rubber stays inside it might (maybe) be fixable with a welding torch fusing the peice a back together.

On 12/19/2016 at 4:44 AM, Tex_NL said:

Partial repairs without and full repairs with spare parts would make sense. As long as a partial repair still can be upgraded to a full repair once parts become available.

This.  Doing a watney should be feasible.

[Aegolius13]

Excellent idea; this would allow me to stop hacking into the save files to repair these things every time I have a break that I fail to notice before quicksaving.  Which makes me feel guilty (just not bad enough to stop).  

You can kind of do the spare-parts approach with the KIS inventory modules holding extra parts.  But it's hard to actually put them on with KIS and have them line up just right.  

On a semi-related note, I've found that in a lot of builds, radiator issues can be solved by going with the static ones.  Most of the time, you only need heat control for your drills and ISRU, so it's often not that hard to design with some static radiators attached to a tank, that in turn is attached to the heaty parts.  And besides durability, the static versions are lighter, use less electricity, and don't block your solar panels.  

[Scoutman1121]

This should already be in stock, considering Engineers should be able to fix the ships broken parts. I mean, their Engineers so they should already be able to. But since it isn't, it should be added for high level engineers.