Non Drive Train Engines

Miloch · 2017-06-20T18:07:37.000Z

How about adding a way to add engines that are not attached to the drive train. Aka, pure power generators. Is this possible without a lot of additional coding?

Coolthulhu · 2017-06-20T18:45:47.000Z

I looked into it and it doesn’t really look all that hard.

The problem is defining the drivetrain: either non-drivetrain engines become new parts (bad idea, because every engine would need a new part) or drivetrain becomes a new part.
So drivetrain would need to become a new part.
The problem with adding a new essential part is adding it to existing vehicles, of which there are tons. Some in mods. Non-core mods would get hit the hardest because all the vehicles in them would be broken until authors added drivetrains to them manually.
Then save compatibility, but that’s easy: every vehicle from old saves would get a drivetrain on every engine for free.

Later on we could split drivetrains into more complex ones: truck drivetrain, car drivetrain, bicycle “drivetrain”. But at first it would probably be just universal, perfect drivetrain that weighs next to nothing, has no transmission loss and no limits on usage.

tl;dr Not much coding, totally doable (just not before 0.D, because feature freeze)

deoxy · 2017-06-20T21:21:08.000Z

I would think you could also specify a different vehicle part that takes the same non-vehicle part (like board, quarter panel, and roof all take sheet metal). That seems safer on saves and mods.

tarburst98 · 2017-06-21T00:53:02.000Z

just do like how you have wheels that are steerable and non. adding more “engine(drivetrain)” is the same as adding more “wheel(steerable)”

Coolthulhu · 2017-06-21T09:05:06.000Z

The problem is that you don’t have “engine” part, it’s “V12 engine”, “V8 engine” and so on.
Moving engine data to items would break mods (not exactly the biggest deal but still) and would make it hard to identify which kind of engine was used (this one is a problem that would require UI rewrite).

So I’d much rather go with a new drivetrain item instead.
It would probably be simpler code-wise too.

tarburst98 · 2017-06-21T09:49:00.000Z

and you have 10 inch wheels, 38 inch wheels, etc, and those can all be made steerable and not. and maybe reverse it, engines are all the same but you can now install a “v12(non drive)”, the only current vehicle that would be changed by it is the portable generator that spawns in garages. which would have it’s engine be non drive and attached to the generator. anything else would have the engine report the exact same information as normal.

Miloch · 2017-06-21T13:51:44.000Z

Tarburst is talking what I was thinking.

kaluce · 2017-06-21T14:17:19.000Z

I like this idea, because I could make something that can run independently on my doombus that doesn’t consume my diesel, or making a long running hybrid car viable. IRL example: I think it’s the Nissan Leaf that has a tiny backup engine for power generation that is used to specifically charge the batteries. The motor has no effect on the driveline. It’s specifically used to increase the range of the EV engines.

deoxy · 2017-06-21T18:15:57.000Z

Coolthulhu:

The problem is that you don’t have “engine” part, it’s “V12 engine”, “V8 engine” and so on.

Unless it’s a horrendous hack under the covers that you want to avoid duplicating, yeah, as tarburst pointed out, wheels and steerable wheels already to EXACTLY what you are complaining about implementing for engines…

Coolthulhu · 2017-06-21T19:21:24.000Z

Vehicle part UI is already terrible, doubling the number of engines is a good way to make it worse.

Maddremor · 2017-06-22T12:13:53.000Z

Would it be possible to implement the the lack or presence of a drive train on the code side, but leave the current engines as having a built in drive train by default? To to test the system a “viritual part” could be installed like an altenator, having no item req., named “detached drivetrain” as a placeholder until a plan for a painless migration is agreed upon. Heck, use a mod to actually make a player facing change to the in game vehicles.

Coolthulhu · 2017-06-22T13:14:13.000Z

As I said above, it would be most likely migration code that would attach actual drivetrains to engines, for free.

Miloch · 2017-06-22T14:36:47.000Z

I think doubling the number of non-electric engines would be far from the worst thing that ever happens. You already have to scroll through a lot of parts.

nick0010 · 2017-06-22T18:10:19.000Z

Miloch:

I think doubling the number of non-electric engines would be far from the worst thing that ever happens. You already have to scroll through a lot of parts.

(X) is already on fire so we can just pile some more wood on it no problem

John_Candlebury · 2017-06-22T18:25:06.000Z

How do you imagine the drive train would work Coolthuhu?

An actual multi-tile piece traveling across vehicles or just an abstract “drivetrain connection” installed on each engine.

Coolthulhu · 2017-06-22T18:39:04.000Z

Abstract, one tile “this engine is connected to drivetrain” part.
Multi-tile would be a giant pain to manage with current vehicle construction system. It would require an overlay or some other big UI rework.

Miloch · 2017-06-22T19:07:31.000Z

I was thinking the simplest would be to add additional parts that be made with the same engines that don’t add to the vehicles propulsion. I’m not a coder, I have no idea how hard this would to implement.

tarburst98 · 2017-06-22T20:59:35.000Z

what about a REVERSE mending situation? as in, you can remove the drivetrain from an engine or attach it by mending it?

Miloch · 2017-06-23T14:12:51.000Z

Not 100% on what exactly you mean, but if it starts off as a drive train engine then it’ll require a higher skill to install as multiple engines running in sync on the drive train requires more knowledge and skill to do.

tarburst98 · 2017-06-23T15:24:29.000Z

just install your false engine, un train it, then install your real engines.