suggestion for everyone on docking

[jath]

This suggestion is not for the development team, but rather for the players. The new docking system is quite intuitive in certain respects. enabling you to face your ship in any direction and dock your ship from any point to any point, simply how it should be. So the basis for this suggestion is to propose a community standard for making docking airlocks.

when making an airlock tube that extends out for a ship to dock on, place a rail block at the bottom center of the walkway pointing toward the walkway. The ships would have the rail docker on the same spot pointing the same direction on thier ship airlock.

I'll post a video of what I'm talking about later.

This essentially enables any ship to dock to any standard airlock regardless of size and shape, even a klingon war bird.

Smaller fighters would require some thought to make docking clamps specifically for them, but overall, the system works how you need it. There's no need to keep anything resembling the old form of docking.

 

[jath]

 

[Phocian]

Really like the idea.
Do you know If you need a public block for non faction ships to dock?

 

[Crimson-Artist]

Should probably go in the discussion forum since this is something that we as a community need to talk about rather than a suggestion about the game.

But yeah, universal docking ports will become a thing. I got some ideas for retractable ones for a station/ship that i'm designing. However theres nothing wrong with a parking lot for ships. its simple to understand and doesn't require semi-specialized doorways, just a docking point and enough clearance.

 

[SkaireKrough]

So the basis for this suggestion is to propose a community standard for making docking airlocks.

when making an airlock tube that extends out for a ship to dock on, place a rail block at the bottom center of the walkway pointing toward the walkway. The ships would have the rail docker on the same spot pointing the same direction on thier ship airlock.

I am all for the development and implementation of a standardized airlock/hatch/door docking arrangement. However your idea falls a bit short.

Any standardized dock of this nature needs to be able to dock to an identical copy of itself, preferably with matching gravity orientation if possible.

Your picture shows an opening of 3X3 which is fairly common, but if both doors have their rail basic block on the 'bottom' of the door there will be no way for them to line up.

Might I suggest that the 'rail basic' block be placed at the middle of right side when facing the hatch and the 'rail docker' block be on the left with both sets of arrows facing toward the middle of the door and a 'camera' block placed at the top facing outwards.
This arrangement would allow ships with identical set-ups to dock to any other door set up the same way and the camera will provide both a viewpoint to be used for docking and an aim point to aid in docking. Of course station doors would not need and could omit the 'rail docker'.


(all my current designs are set up this way, if something else is adopted, I'll have to revise many hatches)

 

[Sven_The_Slayer]

I am all for the development and implementation of a standardized airlock/hatch/door docking arrangement. However your idea falls a bit short.

Any standardized dock of this nature needs to be able to dock to an identical copy of itself, preferably with matching gravity orientation if possible.

Your picture shows an opening of 3X3 which is fairly common, but if both doors have their rail basic block on the 'bottom' of the door there will be no way for them to line up.

Might I suggest that the 'rail basic' block be placed at the middle of right side when facing the hatch and the 'rail docker' block be on the left with both sets of arrows facing toward the middle of the door and a 'camera' block placed at the top facing outwards.
This arrangement would allow ships with identical set-ups to dock to any other door set up the same way and the camera will provide both a viewpoint to be used for docking and an aim point to aid in docking. Of course station doors would not need and could omit the 'rail docker'.
View attachment 11430

(all my current designs are set up this way, if something else is adopted, I'll have to revise many hatches)

I was going to do this for my ships but unfortunately that makes the buttons controlling the airlock inaccessible. I have not decided how to place them but they will be set up in a way that allows for them to dock to each other.

 

[jath]

I am all for the development and implementation of a standardized airlock/hatch/door docking arrangement. However your idea falls a bit short.

Any standardized dock of this nature needs to be able to dock to an identical copy of itself, preferably with matching gravity orientation if possible.

Your picture shows an opening of 3X3 which is fairly common, but if both doors have their rail basic block on the 'bottom' of the door there will be no way for them to line up.

Might I suggest that the 'rail basic' block be placed at the middle of right side when facing the hatch and the 'rail docker' block be on the left with both sets of arrows facing toward the middle of the door and a 'camera' block placed at the top facing outwards.
This arrangement would allow ships with identical set-ups to dock to any other door set up the same way and the camera will provide both a viewpoint to be used for docking and an aim point to aid in docking. Of course station doors would not need and could omit the 'rail docker'.
View attachment 11430

(all my current designs are set up this way, if something else is adopted, I'll have to revise many hatches)

You make a valid point. I will analyze the information put forth and see if my idea and yours can be adjusted to account for this factor in a logical way.

I'm thinking a mixture of both would be best to be honest.

 

[Bench]

I need to sleep but this is still uploading so i'll post it and it'll be up eventually. This is my take on the whole idea, just a small little adapter you dock onto what you already have built on your station

 

[Drakkart]

I am all for the development and implementation of a standardized airlock/hatch/door docking arrangement. However your idea falls a bit short.

Any standardized dock of this nature needs to be able to dock to an identical copy of itself, preferably with matching gravity orientation if possible.

Your picture shows an opening of 3X3 which is fairly common, but if both doors have their rail basic block on the 'bottom' of the door there will be no way for them to line up.

Might I suggest that the 'rail basic' block be placed at the middle of right side when facing the hatch and the 'rail docker' block be on the left with both sets of arrows facing toward the middle of the door and a 'camera' block placed at the top facing outwards.
This arrangement would allow ships with identical set-ups to dock to any other door set up the same way and the camera will provide both a viewpoint to be used for docking and an aim point to aid in docking. Of course station doors would not need and could omit the 'rail docker'.
View attachment 11430

(all my current designs are set up this way, if something else is adopted, I'll have to revise many hatches)

I like this suggestion over any other. A port allowing every possible direction might give the biggest freedom but it also would allow for confusion about how to properly dock because just one of mayn possibilities aligns the ships properly

 

[jath]

I like bench's version, with one exception, we need to differentiate the bottom from the rest of the sides. The bottom should probably be flanked by different colored blocks, while the rest of the unit be mostly uniform. This way, we know which way is up on the entity we're docking to so that we're less likely to dock sideways or upside down.

it's really confusing to have to figure gravity out after you've already docked.

Edit: I was thinking that a light could indicate the bottom of of the tube so that you can toggle the one that is the bottom at any given orientation.

 

[Sven_The_Slayer]

I don't really see the point of a docking collar being a separate entity, why not just build that into the station itself? Also not having two airlocks capable of docking to each other makes it a little less universal.

 

[jath]

I don't really see the point of a docking collar being a separate entity, why not just build that into the station itself? Also not having two airlocks capable of docking to each other makes it a little less universal.

Reply to your rant... LOL

I hope you aren't taking this personally, I enjoy a well thought out argument. Here's mine.

 

[Sven_The_Slayer]

Reply to your rant... LOL

I hope you aren't taking this personally, I enjoy a well thought out argument. Here's mine.

As soon as I saw the hole in the wall I knew exactly what it was for and I laughed out loud.

The claw docking is the only solution to dock this ship because you enter the core from below, the first three methods would actually stop you from being able to access the ship. This still doesn't take away from my desire for being able to dock on flat platforms without bumps. Just because the belly of that ship isn't touching the ground doesn't mean it's floating. The wings are touching, they are just not flat enough to accommodate a rail docker. I am not saying the ship should float, I'm just saying the point at which is central, the core, shouldn't have to touch. The lowest part of the ship would have to make contact with the ground. Think of it as if the ship is docking within internal gravity instead of magnets or clamps.

 

[jath]

It would be nice if gravity was projected upward like on planets rather than being astronaut specific. You could assign which blocks projected the gravity using c>v with the gravity block.

Anyway, I'll cede your point. I think resting your ship on the surface should keep it in place (at least until enough G's are pulled).

Here's hoping for friction.

 

[Sven_The_Slayer]

It would be nice if gravity was projected upward like on planets rather than being astronaut specific. You could assign which blocks projected the gravity using c>v with the gravity block.

Anyway, I'll cede your point. I think resting your ship on the surface should keep it in place (at least until enough G's are pulled).

Here's hoping for friction.

Yeah all I want is the ability to land ships flat without having to jump through a ton of hoops, I don't care how it's achieved really. I have many different small ships as they are my favorite to build so designing specific docks for every ship isn't much of an option. Being able to use "gravity" to align one ship to another would be a really nice option... but seriously will all the friction I got suggesting core based docking with the rail system do you think those people would go for that idea any easier?

 

[benjwgarner]

As soon as I saw the hole in the wall I knew exactly what it was for and I laughed out loud.

Same here. For some reason, it also reminded me of the Kool-Aid man...