New newtwork signal for Energy production and consumption

[Sworn]

New network signal for % of energy production and consumption

What ?

A way to detect not only the accumulator energy (%), but the % of the production and consumption as well.

Why ?

Because there is no way to detect if you need more power input.
Currently you can only know if you gain energy in the accumulators or if you are losing energy.
You can't know if you're getting low cause is night time and no solar for solar panels or if you are getting power lose cause the entire base can't keep up while all lasers turrets are firing.

Both cases the accumulators goes down. But in the first one there is no need for "more energy", it's just night time and the base can keep up.
In the second case the base isn't keeping up so would be nice to have some more "expensive" energy fuel burning for that period that you can't keep up with normal power.

That would allow some interesting system that "turn on" the expensive energy source for while.

Before anyone says, no a SR Latch won't solve, make it like turn on in 50% and turn off 70% of total power storage don't detect if you "need" cause all base is running super slow cause you can't keep up VS everything is running super fine is just the accumulators getting low due night.

[Trebor]

In order to tell if the accumulators in your power network are being drained because it is night or for some other reason all you need is something to compare their charge to. For example in your main power grid set the A signal to the value of your accumulators. Then build another power network with these entities and only these entities: 1 radar, 8 solar panels, 7 accumulators, 2 or 3 power poles to connect it up. Set the B signal to the accumulators of this network, make sure the two power networks remain separate, when B is below 100% it is night. If A is less than B you have a problem, could be as simple as not enough accumulators to last the night could be worse. If B is less than 100 and less than A you either have more accumulator than you need or bitters are attacking the radar, so it's best to build the radar deep within the heart of your base to lessen that from happening. Note if you defend this radar with lasers power them from your main power network.

[Sworn]

Thanks for the example. and sorry for the super late response.

But that is exactly why I'm asking for the signal, is already there in the energy window, we just can't get it in the game, mods can read the power consumption and production value with isn't too much useful as they are always the same, the % value in the Satisfaction bar is what make it goes yellow and red and tells you about how much you need.
If we have this value in a signal than we would not need all that for a simple comparison between how much power you can make and how much power you are using.

[weaknespase]

I don't think percents are reliable - for example if you have 0 production but non-zero consumption that will translate to infinity consumption relative to production, which is not currently expressible in signal system. I'd prefer it using plain KWt or MWt as unit, and the network must know exact values already.

[Sworn]

Could be any value, as long they represent the energy bars that we have in the energy windows. I mention % cause the bars are all in percent values.
If you have Satisfaction bar in 50%, the production will always be at 100%, even if you don't generate all power you can, cause lack of fuel or whatever, it shows how much you are generating now not the total and tells you that you're in need of more.

If it shows the Satisfaction and Production in real number or not won't change to much.

Buuut, at this point I don't really think any dev will add this