So I'm getting to the point in my Megabase where I need to start considering just how exactly I turn one intermediate good into another good and then have that end product wind up in the proper locale. The noodle got turning and what came back to me was the idea of a big exchange/rail depot (two really, one for the east one for the west). Basic building blocks come in (plates, plastic bars, steel, etc etc) are distributed to another train who carries them to a finishing factory of sorts and then are carried back to the exchange and then distributed to their respective final destination being converted into beakers.
So the basic premise I came up with and it's predicated on belts (honestly, I'm not going to do a 10k logistic robot mambo here. There is simply going to be too much going in and out over larger distances to make it 'reasonable' and the amount of energy just numbs me. I think logistic robots are sound for some other things like endpoint delivery into labs or rocket solos but even then, I'd rather be over organized on the front end than have the logistic robots save my ass on the backend.)
Basically I'd have a giant oval belt that established a perimeter. Maybe 8 lanes thick of blue belt, right? This giant oval would have carry every single kind of good imaginable. Within this belt perimeter there would be veins and arteries that loop around the train stations themselves and subsequently there would be capillaries with splitters at the head of the vein or artery (for lack of a better term) that siphon of the correct items for each train and then filter inserters that keep each train car loaded with one type of good to make it clean and easy at the destination to route each good to it's proper place. Ideally I'd set it up so that every 3 or 4 or 5 item combo to build another good would be right next to one another on the train making the receiving end much easier to design.
Anyone have similar examples they've created? I know that 'circles within circles' isn't revolutionary but I was curious to see how much run someone else got out of a similar idea.
Big Belt Exchanges?
Re: Big Belt Exchanges?
One loop of rail.
One train per item?
A train pulls off this loop into a "pickup" station for its good, it sits there until a "delivery" station is activated (say because its input has emptied/is low). The train then delivers, and returns to pickup.
So a section making green circuits would have two delivery station (Copper/Iron plate, if wire production is done within) and would be the pickup for green circuits.
===
Depending on station configuration it could be a single or double-locomotive train. And can have one rail loop (one way) or two for clock-wise and counter-clockwise motion.
The main difference from an exchange is I guess you don't have all the trains going to a particular location, all trains are going from production to use. An exchange has production -> exchange, and then another train from exchange-> use, I guess.
One train per item?
A train pulls off this loop into a "pickup" station for its good, it sits there until a "delivery" station is activated (say because its input has emptied/is low). The train then delivers, and returns to pickup.
So a section making green circuits would have two delivery station (Copper/Iron plate, if wire production is done within) and would be the pickup for green circuits.
===
Depending on station configuration it could be a single or double-locomotive train. And can have one rail loop (one way) or two for clock-wise and counter-clockwise motion.
The main difference from an exchange is I guess you don't have all the trains going to a particular location, all trains are going from production to use. An exchange has production -> exchange, and then another train from exchange-> use, I guess.
Re: Big Belt Exchanges?
Attached is a crude caveman visualization. Blue are Belts Black are Rail Lines. Text says whats generally up there. Hope it conveys the premise.
- Attachments
-
- factoriocrapidea.png (17.74 KiB) Viewed 1855 times
Re: Big Belt Exchanges?
One thing I dont like already is not being able to scale to need more easily. That thing could get honkin beastly in size and I need to scope it out to be large enough for all the basic input sources and intermediate factories.
I think I could totally swing unidirection trains for basic inputs and get clever with switches to try maximize throughput of basic inputs coming into the system. Basic Inputs to me are going to be copper/iron plates, steel plates, green chips. Given the relative proximity of iron and copper on the map I think offloading that duty remotely might be best. The sheer amount of intermediaries that require basic iron makes me waffle on whether i should be doing that on site directly after plate creation but I think Ill check power consumption on the chip plant before calling that. I have a sweet nuke power setup that I want to connect intermediate factories if possible.
Also waffling on mining site/smelting copper wire manufacture. I know copper plates are needed somewhat but thats gonna be a whale of iron and copper floating around.
Exchange to Factories would probably do more point to point bidirectional trains since theyll be unloading basic inputs and loading intermediate goods back in. Think thats more efficient a use of trains I think. Exchange to Finishing might work the same way but Finishing wouldnt really send anything back to the Exchange, I think.
Keep in mind that Im thinking trains that are like 4-48-4 with rocket fuel to haul something like 196k plates into the exchange and dump. The Exchange to Factory transaction is going to need some tuning on picking up intermediate goods so that they arent just waiting and waiting and waiting. Yields dont exceed input after all.
Finishing to Labs could also be bidirectional point to point or just close in proximity to Finishing. Although not hauling anything back to the Finishing side from Labs makes me wonder whats best. It might very well be the close proximity is fine.
thats where Im at with chasing a rocket per minute goal.
I think I could totally swing unidirection trains for basic inputs and get clever with switches to try maximize throughput of basic inputs coming into the system. Basic Inputs to me are going to be copper/iron plates, steel plates, green chips. Given the relative proximity of iron and copper on the map I think offloading that duty remotely might be best. The sheer amount of intermediaries that require basic iron makes me waffle on whether i should be doing that on site directly after plate creation but I think Ill check power consumption on the chip plant before calling that. I have a sweet nuke power setup that I want to connect intermediate factories if possible.
Also waffling on mining site/smelting copper wire manufacture. I know copper plates are needed somewhat but thats gonna be a whale of iron and copper floating around.
Exchange to Factories would probably do more point to point bidirectional trains since theyll be unloading basic inputs and loading intermediate goods back in. Think thats more efficient a use of trains I think. Exchange to Finishing might work the same way but Finishing wouldnt really send anything back to the Exchange, I think.
Keep in mind that Im thinking trains that are like 4-48-4 with rocket fuel to haul something like 196k plates into the exchange and dump. The Exchange to Factory transaction is going to need some tuning on picking up intermediate goods so that they arent just waiting and waiting and waiting. Yields dont exceed input after all.
Finishing to Labs could also be bidirectional point to point or just close in proximity to Finishing. Although not hauling anything back to the Finishing side from Labs makes me wonder whats best. It might very well be the close proximity is fine.
thats where Im at with chasing a rocket per minute goal.
Re: Big Belt Exchanges?
A big circle is a good idea. I do this with trains instead of belts.
However, the fabs need to be outside this circle to ensure expandeability.
Inside, I have the mall, temporary production, labs.
However, the fabs need to be outside this circle to ensure expandeability.
Inside, I have the mall, temporary production, labs.
Re: Big Belt Exchanges?
Yeah, basically I'm unintentionally designing a mega base that looks like a skull with the East and West Exchanges as Eyes. Part of me wonders if I could side chain some of the Iron intermediary factories like Gears onto the West side of the Big Loop.
Also I think that I can triumph over the scaling issue with a clever use of underground belts and splitters but will have to devote some more thought to it. I think I can scale it up if I make junctions from splitters that function as corners if there's only one path for goods to flow. Seems like a fun wee challenge in design. Definitely will not be placing anything within the Big Loop besides train stations and belts and splitters and inserters.
Also I think that I can triumph over the scaling issue with a clever use of underground belts and splitters but will have to devote some more thought to it. I think I can scale it up if I make junctions from splitters that function as corners if there's only one path for goods to flow. Seems like a fun wee challenge in design. Definitely will not be placing anything within the Big Loop besides train stations and belts and splitters and inserters.