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Concept: Auto-levelling mechanism
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Type: Blueprint
File Size
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466.855 KB
13 Oct, 2018 @ 6:23am
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cptsavarus
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Concept: Auto-levelling mechanism

In 1 collection by cptsavarus
SAVTec Industries Truckworks
28 items
Description
What is this?
This is a proof-of-concept design for a wheeled vehicle that can automatically level a platform to the gravity field of a planet.

Requirements
No mods used.
No scripts required.

Controls
Hotkey #1: Toggle Handbrake on / off
Hotkey #2: Toggle Rotor Lock on / off

Confirming accuracy
To check that the arm is level, just hop out of the cockpit & stand your 'naught on top of the arm. Turn around in a circle & keep an eye on the artificial horizon bubble.
It's not always 100% accurate, as sometimes the rotors do get a little stuck (see below) but in testing I've found it's usually accurate to within approx 1-3 degrees (estimated by eyeball.)

Notes
  • Drives like normal
  • You can drive along with the rotors unlocked & watch the vehicle auto-level as it goes or you can lock them to prevent damage while driving over really rough terrain
  • Sometimes the rotors get a little stuck. Usually driving a short distance with them unlocked will free them up
  • Rotor Torque & Braking settings are delicate on this build in order to make the plumb-line find its level quickly without too much pendulum action
  • Concept can be applied to flying vehicles with equally good results

Potential uses
This is a demo model only to show the concept.
It could be used to develop a self-levelling mobile drilling platform or a vehicle that can level out an area of terrain for building on.

Sadly the concept doesn't seem to work very well with small-grid blocks but it could easily be made smaller than this if need be.
7 Comments
< >
cptsavarus  [author] 29 Mar, 2022 @ 5:16am 
Yeah, it sucks to be sure! I can load most of my games but after about 4 minutes, GPU just overheats & shuts down. Had it apart & done what I can but it's properly melted. Bit surprising that it even still works at all!
It's a GT730x4. Old hat when I bought it, even older hat now!
In fairness to the thing though, it's lived a good life and has performed feats that've given haemorrhoids to many a 1070Ti player, so I can't knock it.
I usually begrudge spending big money on my computers. Tend to buy refurbed business machines that are 2-3 generations old & updated with a slightly better card than my last one, so it's doubtful I'll be looking at anything as new as a 3060 - but just for once it would be nice to have something that was bang up to date. Guess I'll see what the money does. Thanks for the tip!
Entarlas 23 Mar, 2022 @ 2:34pm 
Sorry to hear about your card that sucks man. Thank you for the reply and your continued dedication. It's very much appreciated. In the mean time this is definitely better than nothing :) thanks again. Keep an eye on the new 3060s they seem to pop into market at reasonable prices here and there as opposed to never for the other cards. I had to buy an entire pc to get my 3070oc and it was STILL cheaper than what anyone wants for just the card. (About 1k US is what I paid) I gave the PC to my 8yo son. Good luck.
cptsavarus  [author] 23 Mar, 2022 @ 11:21am 
@Klaes.....
Sorry took ages to reply. My GPU melted some time ago, leaving me with a computer that can't play any of my games, hence haven't had much reason to load Steam for a while.

Last I played, I started doing some experiments with an AI pilot script, trying to make it control pistons.
Can't remember the name of the script but it worked to control thrusters based on the distance to the centre of the planet.
I did have some small but encouraging successes with it before my card melted.

Hoping to be able to afford a new PC "soon"(TM) so I can get back to playing. When I do I'll definitely be coming back to this auto-levelling thing, as it's something I've been trying to solve since 2013 and I'm totally convinced that there's a way to make it work.
Entarlas 8 Feb, 2022 @ 7:31pm 
I'd love to see this developed further. (actually came here because of said forum) Sadly there is STILL no leveling mechanism in game for building bases on planets.
woostyboy 18 Oct, 2018 @ 2:09am 
Very cool simple idea, just using gravity! Well done!
cptsavarus  [author] 13 Oct, 2018 @ 6:50am 
Thanks Deathlok! :steamhappy: Posted this in response to a forum thread. Will do a proper survival build that uses it at some point
Deathlok-L17 13 Oct, 2018 @ 6:48am 
cool!