Difference between revisions of "Rover"

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(added note about braking)
(-directly speaking to reader; *mass instead of weight; -fixed size of 1st image; +links; +additional grip needed e.g. on Minmus;)
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[[Image:Rover.jpg|right|thumb|300px|A simple solar-powered, unmanned rover]]
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[[File:Rover.jpg|right|thumb|A simple solar-powered, unmanned rover]]
Rovers are a new feature in Version 0.19. They are ground vehicles equipped with wheels, allowing them to travel around the surface of any celestial body.
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A '''rover''' is a ground vehicle equipped with wheels, allowing them to travel around the surface of most celestial body, notable exceptions are [[Kerbol]] and [[Jool]]. They were introduced with {{version|0.19}}.
  
 
== Constructing rovers ==
 
== Constructing rovers ==
 
  
 
=== Basics ===
 
=== Basics ===
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A rover requires at least some wheels, a command module and a source of [[electricity]]. To allow the vehicle to drive straight, the wheels must be parallel. But they detect automatically in which direction they are facing and turn accordingly when the rover is steering.
  
To build a rover, you have to add wheels to your vehicle. You find these in the utility section. To allow the vehicle to drive straight, the wheels must be parallel. But they detect automatically in which direction they are facing, so you don't have to worry about placing them backwards.
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Wheels require lots of electricity to operate, so a rover should be equipped with generous energy supply in form of [[Battery|batteries]] or a sustainable energy sources in form of [[solar panel]]s or radioisotope generators. Often solar panels are preferred due to their lower mass, but extended solar panels can easily be destroyed by atmospheric drag when on a fast-driving rover in an [[atmosphere]].
 
 
Wheels require lots of [[Electricity]] to operate, so a rover should be equipped with generous energy supply in form of batteries and/or a sustainable energy sources in form of solar panels or radioisotope generators. Most players prefer solar panels due to their lower weight. But keep in mind that extended solar panels can easily be destroyed by atmospheric drag when on a fast-driving rover on a planet with atmosphere.
 
  
 
[[Image:Rover-wheel-compare.png|right|thumb|300px|Rover wheels model 3, 1 and 2 with a Kerbal for size comparison]]
 
[[Image:Rover-wheel-compare.png|right|thumb|300px|Rover wheels model 3, 1 and 2 with a Kerbal for size comparison]]
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=== Advanced ===
 
=== Advanced ===
  
To create a rover which is easy to control, you should try to build it relatively wide and with a low center of mass. This makes it much harder for the rover to topple over when driving fast curves, accelerating or braking. Rovers are less stable when in low gravity, so a rover which is almost impossible to flip over on Kerbin might still require some care on Minmus, for example.
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A rover which is easy to control, should be relatively wide with a low [[center of mass]]. This makes it much harder for the rover to topple over when driving fast curves, accelerating or braking. Rovers are less stable when in low gravity, so a rover which is almost impossible to flip over on [[Kerbin]] might still require some care on [[Minmus]], for example. Especially on bodies with low gravity like Minmus rovers with a low mass might not have enough grip to accelerate. In such case thrusters, usually RCS, pointing upwards can be used to push the rover onto the surface.
  
On small rovers, [[LT-1 Landing Strut]]s can be used to turn them back over when they end up upside down. Larger rovers on low-gravity worlds can help themself up by using [[Reaction Control System|RCS Thrusters]].
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On small rovers, [[LT-1 Landing Strut]]s can be used to turn them back over when they end up upside down. Larger rovers on low-gravity worlds can help themself up by using [[Reaction Control System|RCS thrusters]].
  
To give rovers some more acceleration, RCS or even rocket thrusters can be added to them.
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To give rovers some more acceleration, RCS or even [[rocket engine]]s can be added to them.
  
 
== Piloting rovers ==
 
== Piloting rovers ==
  
Per default, a rover is controlled with the keys A, D, W and S. Unfortunately these keys also control vehicle rotation, which can make a rover completely uncontrollable on planets with low gravity. As a workaround for this problem, many players map the rover controls to different keys in the settings menu. If a number pad is available, a good solution is to map the WASD drive controls to 8456 on the numpad. Another solution is to switch into docking mode when controlling a rover.
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Per default, a rover is controlled with the keys A, D, W and S. Unfortunately these keys also control vehicle rotation, which can make a rover completely uncontrollable on planets with low gravity. As a workaround for this problem, the rover controls can be remapped to different keys in the settings menu. If a number pad is available, a good solution is to map the WASD drive controls to 8456 on the numpad. Another solution is to switch into docking mode when controlling a rover.
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Using docking controls, as opposed to staging controls, it is possible to quickly switch which keys control the translation and rotation. When the controls are in "UN" mode the WASD controls rotate the rover, which can be switched with space. When IJKL rotate and WASD translate, which is usually harmless for a rover. With a single click of the space button, pitching can be easily switch between on and off, therefore giving a stable mode of acceleration/direction change and a quick way to adjust the pitch of the rover on low gravity planets, should it be tipped or launched over a hill.
  
Note: Using Docking Controls, as opposed to Staging controls (particularly in "UN" mode - you can switch with Space if you're in the other) disables vehicle pitching. Coupled with pitching being active in the other mode of Docking, with a single click of the Space button, players can easily switch between vehicle pitching on and off, therefore giving a stable mode of acceleration/direction change and a quick way to adjust the pitch of the rover on low gravity planets, should it be tipped or launched over a hill.
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To prevent rovers from driving away when they are dropped, the parking brake (in the top-center HUD, bottom icon on the right) should be applied prior to the drop. While piloting the rover the “B” (default) can activate the brake, but after releasing the button the brakes will release too.
  
Braking: To prevent rovers from driving away when they are dropped, you can enable the parking brake (in the top-center HUD, bottom icon on the right.) You can also hold "B" to brake while piloting the rover.
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The most flimsy part of a rover are the wheels. When they experience strong impacts, they can get “broken”. In this state they are still intact as a part, but do not work as a wheel anymore. The impact threshold for this to happen is a lot lower than the actual impact tolerance listed in the parts menu. Wheels easily break when the rover jumps, so it is recommended to reduce the speed when the rover is driving over a hill. They can also break when they get faster than the maximum speed of the wheels, which can easily happen when it drives down a slope or uses rocket thrusters to accelerate a rover to higher speeds than it could reach with its wheels only. But it is possible to raise the speed at which the wheels break by reducing the weight pushing on the wheels, for example in atmosphere by using [[wing]]s.
  
When driving a rover, you have to be aware that the wheels are flimsy. When they experience strong impacts, they can get "broken". In this state they are still intact as a part, but do not work as a wheel anymore. The impact threshold for this to happen is a lot lower than the actual impact tolerance listed in the parts menu. Wheels easily break when you let the rover jump, so it is recommended to reduce your speed when you drive over a hill. They can also break when you get faster than the maximum speed of the wheels, which can easily happen when you drive down a slope or use rocket thrusters to accelerate a rover to higher speeds than it could reach on its own.
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Fortunately, broken wheels can be fixed by [[kerbonaut]]s on an [[EVA]]. When a kerbonaut is close to the damaged wheel, right-click it and click on "repair". The wheel will immediately be operational again. Usually the wheel jumps a bit which can damage the rover, especially if it is moving or very light.
  
Fortunately, broken wheels can be fixed by Kerbonauts. To do so, perform an [[EVA]], walk close to the damaged wheel, right-click it and click on "repair". The wheel will immediately be operational again. If repaired while still moving over the ground it can fling a light vehicle and possibly damage it.
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[[Category:Craft]]

Revision as of 16:14, 23 September 2013

A simple solar-powered, unmanned rover

A rover is a ground vehicle equipped with wheels, allowing them to travel around the surface of most celestial body, notable exceptions are Kerbol and Jool. They were introduced with version 0.19.

Constructing rovers

Basics

A rover requires at least some wheels, a command module and a source of electricity. To allow the vehicle to drive straight, the wheels must be parallel. But they detect automatically in which direction they are facing and turn accordingly when the rover is steering.

Wheels require lots of electricity to operate, so a rover should be equipped with generous energy supply in form of batteries or a sustainable energy sources in form of solar panels or radioisotope generators. Often solar panels are preferred due to their lower mass, but extended solar panels can easily be destroyed by atmospheric drag when on a fast-driving rover in an atmosphere.

Rover wheels model 3, 1 and 2 with a Kerbal for size comparison
Image Part Radial size Cost
(Funds)
Mass
(t)
Max. Temp.
(K)
Tolerance
(m/s)
Tolerance
(g)
Electricity
(⚡/s)
Max. Motor Speed
(m/s)
Brake Torque
(kNm)
RoveMax Model S2.png
RoveMax Model S2 Radial mounted 300 0.05 1 200 20 20 1.0 12 0.34
RoveMax Model M1.png
RoveMax Model M1 Radial mounted 450 0.075 1 200 50 50 2.5 34 2
Ruggedized rover wheel.png
TR-2L Ruggedized Vehicular Wheel Radial mounted 760 0.105 1 200 100 80 3.5 58 3
RoveMax Model XL3.png
RoveMax Model XL3 Radial mounted 1 200 1.25 1 200 150 200 5.0 15.5 30


Advanced

A rover which is easy to control, should be relatively wide with a low center of mass. This makes it much harder for the rover to topple over when driving fast curves, accelerating or braking. Rovers are less stable when in low gravity, so a rover which is almost impossible to flip over on Kerbin might still require some care on Minmus, for example. Especially on bodies with low gravity like Minmus rovers with a low mass might not have enough grip to accelerate. In such case thrusters, usually RCS, pointing upwards can be used to push the rover onto the surface.

On small rovers, LT-1 Landing Struts can be used to turn them back over when they end up upside down. Larger rovers on low-gravity worlds can help themself up by using RCS thrusters.

To give rovers some more acceleration, RCS or even rocket engines can be added to them.

Piloting rovers

Per default, a rover is controlled with the keys A, D, W and S. Unfortunately these keys also control vehicle rotation, which can make a rover completely uncontrollable on planets with low gravity. As a workaround for this problem, the rover controls can be remapped to different keys in the settings menu. If a number pad is available, a good solution is to map the WASD drive controls to 8456 on the numpad. Another solution is to switch into docking mode when controlling a rover.

Using docking controls, as opposed to staging controls, it is possible to quickly switch which keys control the translation and rotation. When the controls are in "UN" mode the WASD controls rotate the rover, which can be switched with space. When IJKL rotate and WASD translate, which is usually harmless for a rover. With a single click of the space button, pitching can be easily switch between on and off, therefore giving a stable mode of acceleration/direction change and a quick way to adjust the pitch of the rover on low gravity planets, should it be tipped or launched over a hill.

To prevent rovers from driving away when they are dropped, the parking brake (in the top-center HUD, bottom icon on the right) should be applied prior to the drop. While piloting the rover the “B” (default) can activate the brake, but after releasing the button the brakes will release too.

The most flimsy part of a rover are the wheels. When they experience strong impacts, they can get “broken”. In this state they are still intact as a part, but do not work as a wheel anymore. The impact threshold for this to happen is a lot lower than the actual impact tolerance listed in the parts menu. Wheels easily break when the rover jumps, so it is recommended to reduce the speed when the rover is driving over a hill. They can also break when they get faster than the maximum speed of the wheels, which can easily happen when it drives down a slope or uses rocket thrusters to accelerate a rover to higher speeds than it could reach with its wheels only. But it is possible to raise the speed at which the wheels break by reducing the weight pushing on the wheels, for example in atmosphere by using wings.

Fortunately, broken wheels can be fixed by kerbonauts on an EVA. When a kerbonaut is close to the damaged wheel, right-click it and click on "repair". The wheel will immediately be operational again. Usually the wheel jumps a bit which can damage the rover, especially if it is moving or very light.