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[24.2] Deployable Airbags [v0.4.0 - 2014.08.17]


RoverDude

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So after having a blast with the new soccer balls, it was only a matter of time before I made an airbag part.

NOTE: Stuff moved around a bit, so if you have an older version, please delete it. World Cup mod no longer required.

The inspiration:

The part (the first one out is a mid sized single deployable bag)

NEW: Plugin for better dampening and less arbitrary dissassembly

Now in three sizes for all of your bouncy needs.

Q9MhqfJ.png?1

How to use it:

Add the radial part to your ship. There are four actions:

Inflate (Deploys the airbag)

Deflate (Deflates them, but they cannot be deployed again till recharged)

Recharge (Resets the airbag to be used again, EVA only)

Disconnect (softly decouples the airbags to help reduce part count post-landing)

Inflate, Deflate, and Disconnect can be assigned to action groups.

Inflate, Deflate, and Recharge can be used in the VAB.

TIP: Use lots of airbags with meshing colliders (i.e. the deployed bags touch), and this will help form a solid 'balloon' of colliders around your ship, so you are less likely to have your parts fly apart on impact.

Side note - sideways velocity is a bit more forgiving than slamming straight down - although if you go sideways into the side of a mountain, then odds are you're pretty much toast.

NOTE: DO NOT USE THIS AS YOUR SOLE DECELLERATION MECHANISM! These are fun and bouncy, but will not allow you to collide into mountains at 500m/s!

Get it on GitHub!

https://github.com/BobPalmer/Inflatable-Airbags/releases

License is CC 4.0 Share Alike non-commercial with attribution.

Upcoming changes:

- Recharge via EVA for a monopropellant cost

- KAS compatibility

- More sizes and shapes!

- More explosions...

Edited by RoverDude
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That's pretty awesome, but it seems to me it should not be redeployable except after stowed again by a Kerbal, like Parachutes.

Can something be assigned in 2 stages somehow? One to deploy and one to deflate?

Yes, the plan is to make the redeploy an EVA activity that also requires monopropellant to re-charge it. Also a risk of them getting broken if you slam them a bit too hard.

I'm also updating the texture on the radial box, but wanted to get this out before I head out for the weekend :)

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hey can you make them sorta like ISA Airbag tests long long ago? like these ones:
and

Will take a look - what specific behavior are you looking for?

Very nice, but I can't figure out how to install them. Which folder do I put in GameData?

The USI folder on down. Right now it's just a few parts, but I may have a plugin as well down the road.

Very cool! Can they be used for water landings? The ocean has a tendency to just eat parts on touchdown... not sure if there's a way to really cushion the impact there.

So far water has been eating my pods at high velocity, so any limitation is going to be a stock KSP one, though I have some ideas on the plugin front.

That will indeed do it - I had decoupling on my test one until I went one space bar too far and plowed into Duna at over 500m/s with no airbags or parachutes...

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Good, have you test them on bigger thing with many (small) parts attached (small batteries for example) ? If so, is everything stay in good condition after some distance travelled ?

By the way, on the dev thread video, the deployment is a bit too fast I think.

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Are you planning on making them somewhat realistic in terms of velocity and breaking forces? They could not put Curiosity on Mars this way and I feel airbags should reflect that. Only suitable for lightish loads at low speeds.

hey can you make them sorta like ISA Airbag tests long long ago? like these ones:
and

Wow, that is impressive. Very lifelike. If this mod could replicate this it would be pretty great.

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