Raptor9 Posted January 18, 2016 Author Share Posted January 18, 2016 (edited) 1 hour ago, Rune said: What's stopping it from being a VTOL SSTO in 1.05? I know it's very difficult now, but by no means impossible, and you can take out a substantial amount of horizontal powerplant IMO. For a design that big, I'd bet two RAPIERs are enough to take it to orbit (TWR >0.5 on the runway is all you need). You will of course need to rebalance the whole thing, taking out so much weight from the back... If you want, I am told I make a nice advisor, I could take a look at it. Rune. Been learning how to tame VTOLs for a looong time. Sure, if you have any suggestions or observations, send them my way via PM if you like. The main issue was none of the jet engines fitting inside the Mk2 cargo bay's when mounted vertically. The length of even the J-33 is so long now that the upper end protrudes out the top. I tried covering it up with either auxiliary intakes or additional fuel sponsons, but I could never get a design alternative I was satisfied with. I'll take another crack at it this afternoon now that you've challenged me. Regarding the horizontal TWR, since this craft actually started out as a VTOL, it needed those four RAPIERs to haul the three VTOL engine assemblies with it, which really weighed it down. 39 minutes ago, Dafni said: You have some pretty nice stuff, and a great way of presenting it. Thanks Edited January 18, 2016 by Raptor9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted January 20, 2016 Author Share Posted January 20, 2016 Quick notification for anybody that uses, or is interested in the EV-3 'Clipper' or EV-4 'Longship' MEV designs: I updated almost all of the craft files today. Main thing that was adjusted was the RCS systems. The individual EV-3/EV-4 modules that are launched for orbital assembly were imbalanced, so the RCS limiters were adjusted to ensure much more predictable rendezvous and docking maneuvering. In some cases like the EV-4 Crew Modules, RCS thrusters were added. A few bugged strut placements were also corrected; and each of the EV-4 Crew Modules' probe cores were correctly aligned so they weren't 90 degrees off in the roll axis (don't know how that was left uncorrected for so long ). Updated craft files today: EV-3 'Clipper' EV-3 NTR Type A-Thunder 4B-3 EV-3 NTR Type B-Thunder 4B-3 EV-4 'Longship' Block 1 EV-4 'Longship' Block 2 EV-4 'Longship' Block 3 EV-4 'Longship' Block 4 EV-4 NTR Assy Mk1-Titan 4C EV-4 NTR Assy Mk2-Titan 4C EV-4 NTR Assy Mk3-Titan 4C EV-4 Crew Module Mk1-Titan 4C EV-4 Crew Module Mk2-Titan 4C EV-4 Crew Module Mk3-Titan 4C EV-4 Crew Module Mk4-Titan 4C EV-4 'Saddle' Truss Assy-Titan 4C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 (edited) [REMOVED] Edited December 2, 2016 by Raptor9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 (edited) I've uploaded the T-4 'Skyhawk' Kerbalnaut trainer aircraft. Only differences between the X-4 and the T-4 is the addition of an avionics nose cone to allow non-pilot Kerbals to fly it and a centerline drop tank for longer duration flights. It's a fun little aircraft to fly, very stable. You will have to try hard to get into uncontrolled flight with this one. Also useful for science surveys around Kerbin. I also tweaked the X-4 and updated it for slightly better performance. Edited February 27, 2017 by Raptor9 Updated T-4 print Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWOC Posted January 25, 2016 Share Posted January 25, 2016 Raptor9, your crafts are amazing. because of that i downloaded all of your craft files and subassemblies except for the stuff assembled in orbit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMSP Posted January 25, 2016 Share Posted January 25, 2016 Awesome! Really quick, could you make the LV-3B variant? It would have a SR port instead of a decouple (Or something like that). It would be really great instead of an Altair cargo lander. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted January 26, 2016 Author Share Posted January 26, 2016 (edited) 8 hours ago, DMSP said: Awesome! Really quick, could you make the LV-3B variant? It would have a SR port instead of a decouple (Or something like that). It would be really great instead of an Altair cargo lander. I've actually been working on that this past weekend, in conjunction with some Mun surface base modules. I've had the LV-3B around for as long as the LV-3A, just never had a purpose behind it until I started tackling surface modules. The main thing that's been holding it up is my real life job; and trying to be sure I'm satisfied with the method of placing the surface modules after landing them using the LV-3B. A ramp isn't really an option in this case like the LV-3C had for it's rover. If you go to this youtube video from 6:25-7:55, I've designed (and still designing/refining) my Mun DRA 2.0 (as seen above) around that sort of thing. The LV-3A is more akin to the later Altair impressions with the exposed fuel cells, but the overall architecture remains the same. Also, I'm updating my Thunder and Titan launch systems to something slightly more refined, to include ICPS (Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage) and Exploration Upper Stage equivalents, along with a Mun DRA 3.0, which will be expanded on later. Some examples for comparison. Below: Orion MPCV, Altair LSAM, and Earth Departure Stage (my in game analogues: EV-2C 'Runabout', LV-3A 'Bullfrog', and Titan 2M heavy upper stage) Edited January 26, 2016 by Raptor9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMSP Posted January 26, 2016 Share Posted January 26, 2016 4 hours ago, Raptor9 said: I've actually been working on that this past weekend, in conjunction with some Mun surface base modules. I've had the LV-3B around for as long as the LV-3A, just never had a purpose behind it until I started tackling surface modules. The main thing that's been holding it up is my real life job; and trying to be sure I'm satisfied with the method of placing the surface modules after landing them using the LV-3B. A ramp isn't really an option in this case like the LV-3C had for it's rover. If you go to this youtube video from 6:25-7:55, I've designed (and still designing/refining) my Mun DRA 2.0 (as seen above) around that sort of thing. The LV-3A is more akin to the later Altair impressions with the exposed fuel cells, but the overall architecture remains the same. Also, I'm updating my Thunder and Titan launch systems to something slightly more refined, to include ICPS (Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage) and Exploration Upper Stage equivalents, along with a Mun DRA 3.0, which will be expanded on later. Some examples for comparison. Below: Orion MPCV, Altair LSAM, and Earth Departure Stage (my in game analogues: EV-2C 'Runabout', LV-3A 'Bullfrog', and Titan 2M heavy upper stage) Alright, cool. I'm going to have to re-download all you crafts in 1.1, so a few more aren't a problem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted January 31, 2016 Author Share Posted January 31, 2016 Before I can move forward with my Mun surface base modules, I need to come up with some sort of surface sustainment strategy in the mining and ISRU field. For some clarification on my design methods, my goals are as follows: 1) Create surface base modules that are easy to move around on the Mun surface, and easy to dock together; and have a logical crew passage way between habitation and science modules. 2) Create a family of rovers for mining, ISRU, fuel/ore transport, & mobile power generation, with a common docking port location to ensure modularity and non-reliance on mods (such as KIS/KAS; these mods are awesome , but if someone doesn't want to use them, I don't want to force their hand if they want to download the craft files) 3) Create a system of resource transfer between the above rover family, surface base modules, as well as LV-3 series landers to support lander refueling if necessary; or actually utilizing LV-3A/LV-3B descent stages as propellant depots/power generation units as the brochure prints advertise. This system will need to be modular and rely on stock parts for the same reason as bullet #2. I've created the majority of the family of rovers to support bullet #2, along with some first iterations of some base modules and resource transfer equipment. Here's a preview of a mining and ISRU testing site: I know the small drill and ISRU have their drawbacks, but the large versions would be pretty large and cumbersome to be carried aboard the LV-3B cargo lander. Baby steps, this is my first serious attempt in the mining & ISRU strategies. Keep in mind some of these may change in appearance or function as my overall infrastructure design matures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Sierra Posted January 31, 2016 Share Posted January 31, 2016 1 hour ago, Raptor9 said: -imgsnip- They seem a bit part heavy for their size. The quantity yield of this mining operation also seems a bit low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted January 31, 2016 Author Share Posted January 31, 2016 (edited) 2 hours ago, Captain Sierra said: They seem a bit part heavy for their size. The quantity yield of this mining operation also seems a bit low. Those are some keen observations. 1) Not all of what you see in the picture is necessary to generate propellant from ore. Besides the fact that there are two identical fuel storage rovers in that photo, some are just options or ideas I'm playing with. The SRTG and MPC for example are just some supplemental power generation options that I built emulating NASA concepts of DIPS and FSPS rovers. 2) These systems aren't designed to supply a full refueling station or back-to-back lander refuelings. The expected turnaround for surface crews would be in the timetable of months, not days. Maybe "outpost" would be the better term to use for what I'm going for rather than "base". 3) Bottom line: these are still in their early stages. I anticipate a lot more refinement and redesigns on the horizon. Again, this is my first venture into dedicated mining/ISRU. Edited January 31, 2016 by Raptor9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWOC Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 Raptor9 when will the surface base modules be released they look really cool. will anything else other than the modules be released? -JWOC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldForest Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 @Raptor9 Could you make a download containing all your craft? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted February 6, 2016 Author Share Posted February 6, 2016 14 hours ago, JWOC said: when will the surface base modules be released they look really cool. will anything else other than the modules be released? I wouldn't hold your breath. The thing with these surface modules is making sure they all work together when placed on the Mun. Not only do the small docking ports that link them together have to be the same relative height on all the rovers, but they have to be able to dock whether the rover is riding low or high (ex: empty fuel rover versus full fuel rover). Same thing with the outpost pieces, wheel heights need to be adjusted since each outpost piece weighs differently than another. If for some reason I need to redesign one outpost module or one surface rover, the others may need tweaking as well. It just takes time, and I haven't been able to work on them as much this week as I would have liked due to real-life commitments. Believe me, I want to finish these and get them working so I can use them myself. 13 hours ago, GoldForest said: Could you make a download containing all your craft? I'm afraid that's not on my list of things to do. I don't have any accounts for such a thing (ie Dropbox or Github). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Majorjim! Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 Just now, Raptor9 said: I wouldn't hold your breath. The thing with these surface modules is making sure they all work together when placed on the Mun. Not only do the small docking ports that link them together have to be the same relative height on all the rovers, but they have to be able to dock whether the rover is riding low or high (ex: empty fuel rover versus full fuel rover). Same thing with the outpost pieces, wheel heights need to be adjusted since each outpost piece weighs differently than another. If for some reason I need to redesign one outpost module or one surface rover, the others may need tweaking as well. It just takes time, and I haven't been able to work on them as much this week as I would have liked due to real-life commitments. Believe me, I want to finish these and get them working so I can use them myself. I'm afraid that's not on my list of things to do. I don't have any accounts for such a thing (ie Dropbox or Github). Hey man. As you may have seen after my full Mars constellation mission pack I have been recreating all parts of the Constellation program. I have the altair and the Mars landers made, they have been ready for some time and could do with a no offset limit rebuild to save on parts. My MTV is done, currently undergoing no offset limit overhaul. I like your Mun surface craft, they remind me of my SPR rovers. I look forward to seeing your progress. Do you have any plans to make the Mars craft? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted February 6, 2016 Author Share Posted February 6, 2016 (edited) 11 minutes ago, Majorjim said: Hey man. As you may have seen after my full Mars constellation mission pack I have been recreating all parts of the Constellation program. I have the altair and the Mars landers made, they have been ready for some time and could do with a no offset limit rebuild to save on parts. My MTV is done, currently undergoing no offset limit overhaul. I like your Mun surface craft, they remind me of my SPR rovers. I look forward to seeing your progress. Do you have any plans to make the Mars craft? They've all been made for quite some time (as seen in "Red Planet Rivals" link in the OP), in fact the EV-4 series craft were based on NASA's Mars DRA 5.0 MTV variants. The HLV-5A Duna Cargo lander and HLV-5B Duna Habitat lander are pretty heavy in part count so I'm holding onto those until 1.1 is out, at which time I'll finish tweaking them with some of the new parts from 1.0.5 (and any 1.1 parts that might work better, if any). The HLV-5's just haven't been a priority. Edited February 6, 2016 by Raptor9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Majorjim! Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 Just now, Raptor9 said: They've all been made for quite some time (as seen in "Red Planet Rivals" link in the OP), in fact the EV-4 series craft were based on NASA's Mars DRA 5.0 MTV variants. The HLV-5A Duna Cargo lander and HLV-5B Duna Habitat lander are pretty heavy in part count so I'm holding onto those until 1.1 is out, at which time I'll finish tweaking them with some of the new parts from 1.0.5 (and any 1.1 parts that might work better, if any). The HLV-5's just haven't been a priority. Riight, I completely forgot! Yes I enjoyed that video. The landers seem very reasonable in terms of parts counts though.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted February 6, 2016 Author Share Posted February 6, 2016 2 hours ago, Majorjim said: Riight, I completely forgot! Yes I enjoyed that video. The landers seem very reasonable in terms of parts counts though.. Ha ha; lander, sure wasn't too bad...but when you land two of them next to each other.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Majorjim! Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 Just now, Raptor9 said: Ha ha; lander, sure wasn't too bad...but when you land two of them next to each other.... Yeah thats the killer. Hopefully 1.1 will help with that. Mine where around 800 for the two landers. Its just a shame the fairings are so crap.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted February 7, 2016 Author Share Posted February 7, 2016 (edited) 21 hours ago, Majorjim said: Yeah thats the killer. Hopefully 1.1 will help with that. Mine where around 800 for the two landers. Speaking of high part counts...here is the latest iteration of module tests for a Munar outpost. Part count in this picture is 746; but this is mainly just to demonstrate how the surface resource distribution system works. It's modular with fuel line connections, fuel plugs for attaching to landers/fuel transports/utility modules, a hub to make multiple branches, and an adapter (not shown) for integrating the ISRU and mining rovers (also not shown, but can be seen above). They went through several redesigns, the most significant of which was rotating the small docking ports on each end parallel to the ground so you have anywhere from 150 to 180 degree range of attachment angles (depending on component variant). This also shows how the LV-3A descent stage was originally envisioned as a dual purpose module, so it wasn't just useless debris after the ascent stage departed. Again, these are still a significant piece of time from publishing for download, but I've made a lot of progress this weekend. EDIT: One thing I forgot to mention. Every single component of the distribution system has an external command seat mounted somewhere on it. I deliberately avoided probe cores for three reasons: a) probes are expensive parts, b) probes require a constant power supply, slowly siphoning off more juice the more fuel connections you add, and c) I wanted to give more purpose to Kerbal EVA's, make them more involved in actually building a surface outpost. Edited February 7, 2016 by Raptor9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Majorjim! Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 Just now, Raptor9 said: Speaking of high part counts...here is the latest iteration of module tests for a Munar outpost. Part count in this picture is 746; but this is mainly just to demonstrate how the surface resource distribution system works. It's modular with fuel line connections, fuel plugs for attaching to landers/fuel transports/utility modules, a hub to make multiple branches, and an adapter (not shown) for integrating the ISRU and mining rovers (also not shown, but can be seen above). They went through several redesigns, the most significant of which was rotating the small docking ports on each end parallel to the ground so you have anywhere from 150 to 180 degree range of attachment angles (depending on component variant). This also shows how the LV-3A descent stage was originally envisioned as a dual purpose module, so it wasn't just useless debris after the ascent stage departed. Again, these are still a significant piece of time from publishing for download, but I've made a lot of progress this weekend. EDIT: One thing I forgot to mention. Every single component of the distribution system has an external command seat mounted somewhere on it. I deliberately avoided probe cores for three reasons: a) probes are expensive parts, b) probes require a constant power supply, slowly siphoning off more juice the more fuel connections you add, and c) I wanted to give more purpose to Kerbal EVA's, make them more involved in actually building a surface outpost. How does the distribution system connect up? They look like one part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted February 7, 2016 Author Share Posted February 7, 2016 2 minutes ago, Majorjim said: How does the distribution system connect up? They look like one part. They're a bunch of parts, rovers technically. There are ten in that photo, each connecting to the other via small docking ports. Some docking ports are mounted low, facing up; others are mounted high, facing down. This allows them to link together at multiple angles, allowing more flexibility. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Majorjim! Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 Just now, Raptor9 said: They're a bunch of parts, rovers technically. There are ten in that photo, each connecting to the other via small docking ports. Some docking ports are mounted low, facing up; others are mounted high, facing down. This allows them to link together at multiple angles, allowing more flexibility. Yeah but what about the central pipe sections? Does each rover have a pipe attached? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor9 Posted February 7, 2016 Author Share Posted February 7, 2016 1 minute ago, Majorjim said: Yeah but what about the central pipe sections? Does each rover have a pipe attached? Each has at least two, going opposite ways. This allows fuel to go both ways to feed fuel cells or distribute ISRU-produced propellant if a convertor is plugged in. Most of the rover chassis are built using long or short I-beams, none of which are crossfeed capable. Obviously, if this is all one "vessel" a player can manually transfer resources, but that won't work for long-duration fuel refining or fuel cell power during darkness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Majorjim! Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 33 minutes ago, Raptor9 said: Each has at least two, going opposite ways. This allows fuel to go both ways to feed fuel cells or distribute ISRU-produced propellant if a convertor is plugged in. Most of the rover chassis are built using long or short I-beams, none of which are crossfeed capable. Obviously, if this is all one "vessel" a player can manually transfer resources, but that won't work for long-duration fuel refining or fuel cell power during darkness. Cool, I love the idea. I totally fell in love with the constellation program. I will keep an eye on your future work man! Keep it up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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