EDIT: Upgraded version installed on a ship (just to show what it actually looks like on a ship, this isn't in the download. Read the "edit" below to see what's different):
There's doors that close in front of the drones btw, I just opened them manually because of a glitch.
the rack:
The activator I press at the start is just there for the gif, it's not part of the rack you'll get with the download.
THE UNDERLYING PRINCIPLE:
This is meant to be docked to drone carrying ships and to be easily replaced once the drones have been launched, instead of manually re-docking everything. Keep in mind that this is simply a proof of concept (even though it works) and that I haven't actually installed it and tested it on a ship yet. Also keep in mind that this is the LEFT version of the rack (in case you want to use it on a ship).
HOW TO MAKE IT WORK:
All that needs to be done in order to make this work is to press the activator located at the back, the drones should all launch in sequence with a 0.5 second interval. If pressing the button the first time doesn't work simply press it a second time after waiting a few seconds.
Note: Some drones WILL get stuck inside the rack (usually around 3 or 4). Simply activate the ejection system again in order to eject everything.
YOU CAN:
- Take it completely apart or otherwise modify it
- use it on your ships
EDIT: I have improved the concept to have the push beam system be directly mounted onto the carrier, making the racks easier to buy/manufacture. The way it works is quite similar except that a core gets pushed into an area trigger located on the rack to activate the undocking sequence. The beams located on the main ship are synchronized with the undocking of the drones.
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If you're interested in the individual drones you can download the latest version from here: http://starmadedock.net/content/soul-drone.1326/
If you're interested about drones you can read this thread I made on the plus and minuses of drone warfare: http://starmadedock.net/threads/to-drone-or-not-to-drone-an-answer.3246/
