Docking, placing yourself anti parallel

[brusura]

Hi

I have been playing without mechjeb for sometimes, it's harder but more fun. Have you guys found a fast way to put your docking port anti parallel to selected port? Right now I just switch to the other craft take control from the docking port there and read heading and elevation, then switch back to my ship and just place myself at opposite heading and elevation.

I'd like to speed up this process, any idea on how to do this? No mod, just kerbal engineering

Edited August 5, 2013 by brusura

[Klingon Admiral]

Put the docking port of craft #1 along the normal/anti-normal vector of your orbital plane, then put the docking port of craft #2 along the anti-normal/normal vector of the orbital plane.

[brusura]

Put the docking port of craft #1 along the normal/anti-normal vector of your orbital plane, then put the docking port of craft #2 along the anti-normal/normal vector of the orbital plane.

Thanks but that is not speeding up things, I still have to switch to the other craft and manuevering, and there are situation where I need to dock at an arbitrary angle.

[blizzy78]

Have you guys found a fast way to put your docking port anti parallel to selected port?

I usually just switch to 'chase' camera mode and rotate by hand until yaw and pitch axes look parallel. Then move in closer and adjust again as necessary. No need to switch vessels.

Put the docking port of craft #1 along the normal/anti-normal vector of your orbital plane, then put the docking port of craft #2 along the anti-normal/normal vector of the orbital plane.

I don't really get why people recommend this all the time. It just isn't necessary at all.

[blizzy78]

(double-post)

[Klingon Admiral]

I don't really get why people recommend this all the time. It just isn't necessary at all.

But it makes it far more easy for players new to docking, once one becomes more experienced they should be able to dock any craft together in any orbit at any angle, just by guesstimating the angles. And one does not really have to match up the alignment of the docking ports before the final approach, where eyeballing is totally possible.

[brusura]

I usually just switch to 'chase' camera mode and rotate by hand until yaw and pitch axes look parallel. Then move in closer and adjust again as necessary. No need to switch vessels.

It is what I am doing sometimes when I am lazy and do not want to switch over, but I always end up with a slighty non aligned solar panel for example, the docking camera mod was nice for that little triangle that tell you the angle.

Well I guess I'll keep trying until I get perfect, or placing battery pack near docking port.

[blizzy78]

but I always end up with a slighty non aligned solar panel for example, the docking camera mod was nice for that little triangle that tell you the angle.

So I take it your concern is only on the roll axis rather than yaw/pitch.

[brusura]

So I take it your concern is only on the roll axis rather than yaw/pitch.

well that is one of the problem, but I prefer to place myself antiparallel at 50m or more when visual estimation is not possibile and then, if necessary, adjust when getting close, you do less manuevers and use less rcs fuel in my experience.

[blizzy78]

I don't see the advantage of aligning yourself when you're not even close enough to see the target port. Personally I just move close to it, align myself rotation-wise, move to the docking axis, and go forwards to dock. It takes only a tiny amount of RCS fuel to do that. You know, you can always use timewarp if things don't go "fast" enough. This saves a lot of fuel and still you're going faster than usual.

[Cashen]

If you are mis-aligned on the roll axis, it's pretty easy to correct for that as you inch closer. If not, you can always undock, back away a short distance, roll to the correct orientation, and re-dock.

[Bunsen]

I don't really get why people recommend this all the time. It just isn't necessary at all.

In equitorial orbits, it makes for stupidly easy alignment -- point at the north or south pole on the nav ball, turn on SAS, and translate. Also, if you like to take things slowly, you never have to correct for the changing relationship between the vessel axes and nav ball. If you're still getting used to translation controls and the nav ball symbols, that little bit of simplification can really help.

[Kimberly]

In equitorial orbits, it makes for stupidly easy alignment -- point at the north or south pole on the nav ball, turn on SAS, and translate. Also, if you like to take things slowly, you never have to correct for the changing relationship between the vessel axes and nav ball. If you're still getting used to translation controls and the nav ball symbols, that little bit of simplification can really help.

I don't think it's a great habit to get into, because that method's not useful for RCS-less docking. (And the more weight/parts you can leave off your craft, the better.)

[dlmarti]

I am pretty sure there is a patch needed to get docking working with 0.21, check the mechjeb thread.

[gilflo]

Here is what i am doing to dock a ship on my space station. The problem is often that the space station drift and don't stay on same heading and attitude you begin with.

On the ship I choose space station as target. I select the chase view and I wait until my ship is aligned on its target. Then I switch to the space station and I choose my ship as target and I wait until the SP is aligned on the ship.

I use MechJeb smart ASAS and TGT+ to do alignment. Meanwhile I use MechJeb ASAS on my ship to decrease relative speed to 1m/s using REL-, if necessary I use TGT+ to realign ship on target, then I time warp until I get close to 200m.

Then I begin the docking with ORDA. From time to time I switch to SP to re align if necessary. Under 100m the SP does not stay anymore on MechJeb ASAS to keep alignment, so I cut it and select SAS on (T), hoping that the drift would be at minimum. Then I swich back to the ship to survey ORDA.

On the last 10m, I often switch ORDA and take it manual as if there is to much drift from space station, ORDA would pull up and try another docking. I realise that even if you are not perfectly aligned on the last 1m, the docking ports will attract each other and stuck together after 2 or 3 bump.

[brusura]

I'm using this great mod from NavyFish now, very minimalist but do what I needed:

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/43901-Plugin-0-21-Docking-Port-Alignment-Indicator-%28Release-1-0%29

Edited August 5, 2013 by brusura

[krenshala]

Accomplished my first rendezvous and dock last night using the Docking Port Alignment tool. I definitely helped line things up quicker.

[Apollo13]

posted to wrong thread.

Edited August 6, 2013 by Apollo13

[Stankleberry]

If you are mis-aligned on the roll axis, it's pretty easy to correct for that as you inch closer. If not, you can always undock, back away a short distance, roll to the correct orientation, and re-dock.

Approx how far away do you have to move the two clamps away from each other before it resets and allows you to put them back together?

[Vegesus44]

Anti parallel = Perpendicular?

[blizzy78]

Anti-parallel (PAR-) is the label of an attitude button in MechJeb. It simply means to rotate so you're parallel to the target's axis (a docking port's docking axis, for example), but facing the other way (= looking at it.)