One simple example:
Some setups use a loop of ammo around the base perimeter, supplying guns along the way. Having such a belt represents a huge investment of materials to fully laden and supply.
Proposed idea:
Belt that only allows one item per segment.
The standard belt (fully laden) holds 8 items per segment, 4 per lane. The idea is to reduce that to one item per lane, per segment. This would reduce the 'belt storage' by at least 75% (8 -> 2/seg), and 85% (8->1/seg) if only one lane is used.
The belt would be useful for transporting any high-value/resource-intensive items - too costly to have sitting around on belts; ammo around a base, alien artifacts/science, etc.
I don't know if it is even possible to hack the base transport belt options in this way. If not for mods, then a proposal to add such a property to the base prototype definition.
[Idea] Sparse Belt
Re: [Idea] Sparse Belt
The devs have said future versions (maybe even 0.13?) will have means of stopping belt segments with circuit networks, and presumably belt sensors.
If both are implemented, it will be pretty simple to make the belt as sparse as you like with circuits and combinators.
If both are implemented, it will be pretty simple to make the belt as sparse as you like with circuits and combinators.
-
ratchetfreak
- Filter Inserter
- Posts: 952
- Joined: Sat May 23, 2015 12:10 pm
- Contact:
Re: [Idea] Sparse Belt
or make it a loop where you have a metered inserter putting on the belt. ammo goes around and if not picked up then it'll get pushed back into a buffer chest.
With some trickery you can even speed up the inserter or activate multiple ones if the ammo gets picked up (possible using counting stations along the path).
With some trickery you can even speed up the inserter or activate multiple ones if the ammo gets picked up (possible using counting stations along the path).
Re: [Idea] Sparse Belt
It is quite easy to rig the smart inserter at the start of the belt to smart chest at the destination already.sillyfly wrote:The devs have said future versions (maybe even 0.13?) will have means of stopping belt segments with circuit networks, and presumably belt sensors.
If both are implemented, it will be pretty simple to make the belt as sparse as you like with circuits and combinators.
I do mods. Modding wiki is friend, it teaches how to mod. Api docs is friend too...
I also update mods, some of them even work.
Recently I did a mod tutorial.
I also update mods, some of them even work.
Recently I did a mod tutorial.
-
MalcolmCooks
- Filter Inserter
- Posts: 253
- Joined: Mon Apr 06, 2015 8:32 pm
- Contact:
Re: [Idea] Sparse Belt
Dang it I should have thought of thatratchetfreak wrote:or make it a loop where you have a metered inserter putting on the belt. ammo goes around and if not picked up then it'll get pushed back into a buffer chest.
thank you
Re: [Idea] Sparse Belt
The metered route does work for certain circumstances, but is tricky to implement well.
Caveats:
The goods will of course still have the ability to compress and collect at the end of the belt.
Even on yellow belt, things like burner-inserters have difficulty grabbing goods from belt-to-ground tiles as they pass by.
The load/unload system requires a loop. Either in the mechanical sense or the logistical sense of balancing material counts at each end of a belt.
The biggest hurdle is time v. speed. For simple/low-volume supply, normal metering works fine (sans the burner-inserter problem). If trying to use the system as a trigger, for increased production for example, any 'gap' in the goods (having been removed from the belt and used) must migrate all the way to the endpoint before registering in the metering system.
We may have to wait and see what the devs make available in the future. Though, even with belt sensors and power controls, I think this may not be truly possible even with those new options on as granular a level as originally noted.
--
As an alternative solution, desired goods could be incrementally spaced with 'worthless' goods in between. The belt would again have to be a loop, and goods predictably added to the belt in order - a logistical problem all its own.
Caveats:
The goods will of course still have the ability to compress and collect at the end of the belt.
Even on yellow belt, things like burner-inserters have difficulty grabbing goods from belt-to-ground tiles as they pass by.
The load/unload system requires a loop. Either in the mechanical sense or the logistical sense of balancing material counts at each end of a belt.
The biggest hurdle is time v. speed. For simple/low-volume supply, normal metering works fine (sans the burner-inserter problem). If trying to use the system as a trigger, for increased production for example, any 'gap' in the goods (having been removed from the belt and used) must migrate all the way to the endpoint before registering in the metering system.
We may have to wait and see what the devs make available in the future. Though, even with belt sensors and power controls, I think this may not be truly possible even with those new options on as granular a level as originally noted.
--
As an alternative solution, desired goods could be incrementally spaced with 'worthless' goods in between. The belt would again have to be a loop, and goods predictably added to the belt in order - a logistical problem all its own.