Damaged walls block assembly machines from functioning

[factoriouzr]

An easy example of this is when making gates in an assembly machine. If the assembly machine is loaded by non-damaged walls first but is missing some ingredients (could be walls or something else) so that it can't yet make a gate and there is a damaged wall in the chest the or belt the inserter is loading the assembly machine from, then it will try to load the damaged wall into the assembly machine and it will get stuck and not be able to put in the wall because damaged walls can't stack with regular walls and the assembly machine won't run until the user manually fixes the issue by destroying and recreating the inserter or removing the walls from the assembly machine, etc.

This for me happened when using consturction robots. I got the robots to disassemble walls along my border and a lot of them were damaged. The robots put the walls into storage chests that were later put into requester chests used by the gate assembly machine by the robots.

There are several possible fixes to this issues:

1) allow stacking of damaged objects with regular objects
2) allow repairing of damaged objects inside containers by construction robots and don't transfer them to requester chests if they are damaged.

I think solution 1 for this particular issue would be the best, but I think implementing 2 (which I think is also posted as another issue) is really important as it's really annoying to have damaged buildings in one's inventory that one manually has to place on the ground to be repaired when one already has a personal roboport.

[factoriouzr]

Also this becomes an issue with all ingredients that can be damaged. For example this will likely happen with assembly machines, and turrets that can be upgraded by mods and require previous turrets.

[kovarex]

Or there could be a repair machine

[Koub]

[factoriouzr]

So what's your idea for implementation Kovarex? As long as it works automatically even in the player inventory and it's not something that has to be set up for every item type and every factory.

[ssilk]

Replace "repair machine" with "repair and recycle machine"... it's so often requested.

[factoriouzr]

Agreed. There should at the very least be a way in game to destroy items automatically without having to put the items in a chest and manually destroy it.

[Ranakastrasz]

Agreed. There should at the very least be a way in game to destroy items automatically without having to put the items in a chest and manually destroy it.

As long as it isn't a quick hotkey that you can do by accident in your inventory, causing easy accidental loss of items.

Repair would be preferable. Perhaps allow robots to repair items in chests?

[theBeave]

A logistics network filter for 'Damaged Items' would facilitate this functionality. As it it could be applied to a requester chest > items passed into fictional repair machine > then dumped out into provider/storage chest.

I see the following being points of discussion:
- This would require that 'condition'-based requests are considered before 'item'-based.
- Perhaps a change to the logistics filter selection that includes controls for condition condition. That is to say that any of the filter options also include an option for 'with/only/no damaged items', defaulting to 'no damaged items'.
- Addition of an 'Any Item' filter, or '*' to use in conjunction with the previous to pull all damaged items.

Or, maybe have it so that damaged items are ignored for logisitics all together and only ever get put into storage chests upon deconstruction. Then, if the bots have the repair packs and the item is requested, the bots go, repair, and deliver. By extension, inserters could ignore damaged items in the first place (unless the recipe specifically allowed such items), then they just remain on the belt or in the chest.

I have a feeling that triggering the bots to repair any damaged item in their range, be it in-place, in-chest, on-belt, or in-inserter, might be the least painful way to make things happen. Ultimately, it seems appropriate that some cost be paid to repair items, that they aren't fixed for free by mutating them in an assembler. The question is: How best to pay that tax?

[Ranakastrasz]

A logistics network filter for 'Damaged Items' would facilitate this functionality. As it it could be applied to a requester chest > items passed into fictional repair machine > then dumped out into provider/storage chest.

I see the following being points of discussion:
- This would require that 'condition'-based requests are considered before 'item'-based.
- Perhaps a change to the logistics filter selection that includes controls for condition condition. That is to say that any of the filter options also include an option for 'with/only/no damaged items', defaulting to 'no damaged items'.
- Addition of an 'Any Item' filter, or '*' to use in conjunction with the previous to pull all damaged items.

Or, maybe have it so that damaged items are ignored for logisitics all together and only ever get put into storage chests upon deconstruction. Then, if the bots have the repair packs and the item is requested, the bots go, repair, and deliver. By extension, inserters could ignore damaged items in the first place (unless the recipe specifically allowed such items), then they just remain on the belt or in the chest.

I have a feeling that triggering the bots to repair any damaged item in their range, be it in-place, in-chest, on-belt, or in-inserter, might be the least painful way to make things happen. Ultimately, it seems appropriate that some cost be paid to repair items, that they aren't fixed for free by mutating them in an assembler. The question is: How best to pay that tax?

Repairing tools and ammo, well, don't. At best, combine them with matching equvilents.
Repairing playable entities, repair kits. It already works that way, just that it requires you to place them. Either machine or robot applies repair kit, uses up charge at a 1:1 health ratio (1:2 for walls ofc)

[Koub]

Repairing playable entities, repair kits. It already works that way, just that it requires you to place them. Either machine or robot applies repair kit, uses up charge at a 1:1 health ratio (1:2 for walls ofc)

I play Factorio to automate. If I'm told that the ultimate solution is to do something manually every single time, I'm sad

[Ranakastrasz]

Repairing playable entities, repair kits. It already works that way, just that it requires you to place them. Either machine or robot applies repair kit, uses up charge at a 1:1 health ratio (1:2 for walls ofc)

I play Factorio to automate. If I'm told that the ultimate solution is to do something manually every single time, I'm sad

Yep. Ofc, you only end up with damaged objects if you go and pick them up before repairing them, and then only early game. (Late game, robots, which do both for you)


Actually, repairing tools/armor might be reasonable. Probably need a 1:10 ratio or something, but powered armor does degrade, and I haven't actually tested what happens to modules if it is destroyed. (mainly because even with long games with me fighting to shield breaking point, I barely lose 5% durability, and you have to risk death to accomplish it.)

[factoriouzr]

There has to be a way to repair items manually and automatically inside the player inventory as well. Ie. use repair pack manually in inventory before robots, and after robots when inside network or with personal roboport and repair pack, robots should repair inside inventory.

This makes sense because the game is about automation. I also really don't like having to place entities manually to have them repaired even with robots.