Multiple integrated probe solar panels

[Patrick Suddeth]

I've gotten requests to make my NanoKubes be a single model to help with KAS compatibility among other things. The solar panels for the Kubes normally get placed along its four sides facing outward. How do I go about getting solar to work on a single-model piece when the solar panels are multiple entities facing in different directions? Or, more generally, how do I make a working solar panel that has a collector area made of multiple parts? I'll most likely be modeling in Blender and importing into Unity.

[Greys]

I believe one part is allowed to have multiple solar panel modules, as long as you give each of them uniquely named transforms and suncatchers; but you can only have one animation play at any time with stock modules. As such you could have an indefinite number of static solar panels, but you can only have one deployable solar panel; should be fine to have both though, any number of statics and one deployable. If someone has made a replacement solar panel module that allows for multiple deployables I am unaware of it, but solving that issue is literally a few letters change in code.

[Patrick Suddeth]

I think that should help. I'm not sure if I was clear enough in the OP, but here's the two types of panels I'm trying to make:

1: integrated static panels on the probe body. The probe is cube-shaped, and the panels will be around four of its sides, so it will have 4 sun catchers each facing in a separate direction. All of them are static, not deploying.

2: attachable deployable solar panels. They will have a deploy animation, but not be sun-tracking. Since they won't be turning after deployment, I wanted sun catchers on both sides so it'd work with either side facing the sun. These are attachable parts, and will have a deploy animation, but only one.

The two issues I'm having with these is I'm not sure how to make a solar panel, deployable or static, with more than one sun catcher.

The other issue is getting multiple solar collectors to work while they're facing in different directions.

The best I've gotten is 4x panels that clutter up the UI and only generate power all together at once when only the first one is facing the sun.

Edited February 12, 2015 by Patrick Suddeth

[Ricardo79]

Thank god this is a new thread.

Where can I get info on the necessary nodes/gameobject...etc to create a sollar panel?

I do have modeled it in max and I triing to figure out how to make it working ingame. It is static and have two sides I want em to cach sunlight.

So beside the colider, and the mesh itself what else should I model/setup in max or in unity, to make this thing work?

As for the part file I think I can figure that out from the stock static panel.

My question is modelling/setup related for example what is that named transforms / sun catchers you mentoined? (Do I have to model and give it any name or they are just GameObjects with specific direction setup? Do they have a specific naming convention like the thrustTransform?

Thank you in advance for clearing things about this.

[Nertea]

I think that should help. I'm not sure if I was clear enough in the OP, but here's the two types of panels I'm trying to make:

1: integrated static panels on the probe body. The probe is cube-shaped, and the panels will be around four of its sides, so it will have 4 sun catchers each facing in a separate direction. All of them are static, not deploying.

2: attachable deployable solar panels. They will have a deploy animation, but not be sun-tracking. Since they won't be turning after deployment, I wanted sun catchers on both sides so it'd work with either side facing the sun. These are attachable parts, and will have a deploy animation, but only one.

The two issues I'm having with these is I'm not sure how to make a solar panel, deployable or static, with more than one sun catcher.

The other issue is getting multiple solar collectors to work while they're facing in different directions.

The best I've gotten is 4x panels that clutter up the UI and only generate power all together at once when only the first one is facing the sun.

Hey, I don't know if you got this working with the stock modules - I never did to my satisfaction (UI issues as you mention). I ended up writing my own solar panel module to handle multiple suncatcher transforms - feel free to use it if you want.