Ore Processor

[Eric Walch]

Updated Dr. Nil's Ore Processor to version 1.59.

• - Needs now Oolite 1.74 or newer to work.
  - Converted all XML plists to open step versions.
  - Makes use of cargo handling introduced in oolite 1.74

The new cargo handling does mean that the processed stuff is no longer awarded directly to the player, but instead the content of the splinter itself is changed. This results in that the number of objects in the hold does not change during processing and full-hold messages are now more reliable.

As bonus, when you now scoop a splinter with minerals, processes it successfully and than drop the splinter again, you will drop the newly processed commodities.


I started a new topic for the ore processor because the original topic was started by Dr. Nil and keeps pointing to outdated versions.

You should always find the newest version on the [wiki]Ore_Processor[/wiki] page.

[snork]

cool, thank you.

No more smashing splinter after splinter, wondering what I am doing wrong, until I finally notice the hold is full.

[Zeimusu]

Having some trouble with this combined with Griff's asteroids. In the version of griff ships found from the wiki: http://wiki.alioth.net/index.php/Griff_Industries (in which there are separate oxps for Replaced ships and additions)
The "griff_normalmapped_splinter_template" seems not to be defined in the Griff additions, so the none of the splinters are processable. I can get the ore processor to work somewhat by changing griff_normalmapped_splinter_template to griff_normalmapped_splinter_1 in the shipdata.plist. However, it seems that processable splinters are much rarer if griffs ships are used than in vanilla oolite (having scooped about 12 tonnes of minerals, I only found 1 tonne of alloys). Adding overrides for griff_normalmapped_splinter_1{1-8} seems to fix this.

(this is my first time messing with the internals of any oxp, thanks for creating it!)

[Smivs]

Hi Zeimusu, and welcome to the friendliest board this side of Riedquat.
This sounds more like a problem with Griff's OXP rather than the ore=processor, so it might be worth mentioning it on the thread for Griff's ships here.

[Anonymissimus]

This equipment does not need to be primable.
Once it is hardwired, there should probably be a check that the player cannot run out of energy while processing. If in bad need, splinters can be ejected and re-scooped to initiate the processing process. But with fast enough energy recharge, it is impossible. (With Caduceus Omega and NEU at least recharge is higher than the energy needed.)
And the scanner should start scanning automatically once locked onto a splinter within range using shipTargetAcquired.

[spara]

You're using a Caddy with NEU for mining ? Some people might take that as an insult, you know . I would love to see the face on a poor miner's face flying a Mining Transported doing her long day shooting asteroids around a rock hermit and seeing a Caddy arriving and joining the fun.

This equipment does not need to be primable.

Take into account that happy miners of Ooniverse are using Mining Transporters, Worms, Adders, Cobra Is and at best Cobra IIIs. Adder has a one energy bank. Mining Transporter has two. With these ships energy control is vital. The ability to fully control the equipment is much needed so the equipment needs to be primable. Even with hardwiring (Galcop does not approve it, but it happens), it's still useful for these ships to be able to stop processing and continue at some other time. It's the same thing with scanning, it eats energy and for these ships it needs to be controllable.

Once it is hardwired, there should probably be a check that the player cannot run out of energy while processing.

It's hardwiring after all, very simple tech just bypassing the priming system. Just a few wires type of thing.

And the scanner should start scanning automatically once locked onto a splinter within range using shipTargetAcquired.

A nice idea, the scanner could be hardwired too. When I have some more time, I'll add the possibility to hardwire the scanner.

[Anonymissimus]

You're using a Caddy with NEU for mining ? Some people might take that as an insult, you know . I would love to see the face on a poor miner's face flying a Mining Transported doing her long day shooting asteroids around a rock hermit and seeing a Caddy arriving and joining the fun.

A full featured Caddy's pilot's day can be ruined either. Imagine a "woop woop - platinum destroyed" malfunction when making a jump. Then the up to 1000kg contracted platinum is gone, even if never hit onto the hull. That's when you might wish for an ore processor. It's not even the problem to have the money for buying the platinum - there are just not enough stations selling enough of it until you run out of the contract's deadline.
Also, shooting asteroids seems to make you not only a miner, but equally a hunter from the NPCs' perspective, and a lot of it. (player.roleWeights) Probably since asteroids have a bounty. While this should be considered a bug and an exploit, I finally wanted to be viewed as a hunter, as I can't help but to be viewed as a trader just because I frequently dock, even if it's mainly for looking for contracts instead of trading.
Lastly, I wanted to check out the ore processor with the ship. Even if it forces me to have more primable equipment.

A Cobra 3 with EEU (recharge 7.2) perhaps suffices already for the processor hm ?
The scanner needs much less energy. Hardwiring it is much less problematic then. And even with the Adder I wished for a hardwired scanner.

[spara]

Hardwiring the scanner seems to be quite a bit more work/redesigning than I assumed. Isn't going to happen very soon. At least not by me anyway. Sorry.

[Anonymissimus]

Splinters are still processed even though the processor is damaged. I suspect it's because of the hardwiring. I don't recall whether I had the processor still available as primable, but that should not have been the case, so manual procesing (and scanning) should have been unavailable.

[spara]

Splinters are still processed even though the processor is damaged. I suspect it's because of the hardwiring. I don't recall whether I had the processor still available as primable, but that should not have been the case, so manual procesing (and scanning) should have been unavailable.

Thanks. Should now be fixed in 2.2.2.

[NewtSoup]

I'm hesitant to commit an act of Necromancy. But I don't want to assume that Ore Processor is unmaintained.

I have an issue with Ore Processor:

My refined commodities have too much mass.

As you can see my cargo is at 30 of 35 ton capacity yet I only have 17t of cargo ( 12 Alloys, 4 radioactives and 1 Minerals )

I've tested the cargo capacity requirements for Platinum, Gold and Gemstones at a station and they don't seem to take up any cargo space.

But on my ship they seem to be taking up 13 tons of space for 30 units of commodities.

I can see what is happening - When a splinter is picked up it weighs 1 ton. If it contains 7 grams of Gemstones and processed then it's simply marked as processed and the players cargo is updated as having 7 grams of gemstones - That 7 grams of gems then weighs 1 ton. If I then eject "gemstones" 7 units are ejected in the form of a processed splinter so clearly it's the splinter that's being stored rather than the commodities refined from it. When I then sell a single unit of gems the extra mass from all refined splinters suddenly vanishes and my used cargo space drops to the expected 17/35

I'm guessing this is not a bug as much as "just how it works" though the original post "you will drop the newly processed commodities" suggests otherwise.

So, my question is - are there any plans to continue development of Ore Processor? At the moment it's one of my favourite addons.

[phkb]

Precious metals and gem-stones are treated kind of differently when scooped (or, as in this discussion, processed in space). If you scoop 10kg of gold in a 1t cargo pod, your available hold space will go down by 1t while you're in space. After you dock, all precious metals and gem-stones are transferred into the ship's safe. A side effect of this is, if you scoop 10kg of gold, you can eject it again, but not after you dock. Once precious metals and gem-stones are added to the safe, you can't eject them.

The ore processor is tapping into this methodology - if a 1t splinter is processed and it's converted to 1t radioactives, you can eject it, and rescoop it, and it will still be 1t radioactives. The same with the precious metals and gem-stones - processed to be 10kg gold, eject it, scoop it, it will still be 10kg gold. So really, when you eject the 10kg gold and it appears as a splinter, you should really consider it as 10kg gold (+ 990kg worthless rock that isn't being mentioned because it's worthless).

Some of this comes down to how you think the ore processor is working, and regardless of which view you take, there's an element of hand-wavium taking place. From a technical standpoint all that's happening is that the commodity type and quantity of the splinter is being changed. It would be simple enough to change this so that the splinter is actually removed, the commodity is added directly to your manifest, and then if you eject an item it will eject as a cargopod. Except for precious metals and gems - as mentioned, these items can't be ejected once they're added to the safe.

I don't know if that fixes the issue for you, but hopefully it at least explains the current methodology.

[NewtSoup]

It does explain a reasoning behind it, yes, thank you.

If I were to have a go at it though, and I have given it thought, I would put the precious metals and gems automatically in "the safe" and clog the cargo bay with a new material one might call "waste" as the remains, less even the most generous helping of RNG, are still close enough to one ton. The detractor in this case is the local space around a mining vessel gets full of ejected waste material. The exceptions being alloys and radioactives as they always come in 1 Ton units.

I think I shall modify Ore Processor to my personal taste ( I already have done somewhat in mixing new audio together to replace the scanning and processing sounds )

[spara]

I can still remember scratching my head with this one . As phkb says, almost anything is possible. The processed goods can easily be converted into pods and jewels moved to the safe. However I felt that it was more immersive if this kind of magic would not happen. No stack of empty pods waiting to be filled with processed materials, no pipe running from the processor to the safe for gem transfer, but rather the rock being somehow identified and processed. Ok, it looks the same when ejected, but that's just the outer part, it's obviously been carved hollow and the goods are inside this makeshift crate .

[NewtSoup]

I can still remember scratching my head with this one . As phkb says, almost anything is possible. The processed goods can easily be converted into pods and jewels moved to the safe. However I felt that it was more immersive if this kind of magic would not happen. No stack of empty pods waiting to be filled with processed materials, no pipe running from the processor to the safe for gem transfer, but rather the rock being somehow identified and processed. Ok, it looks the same when ejected, but that's just the outer part, it's obviously been carved hollow and the goods are inside this makeshift crate .

I agree, I don't want to lose immersion, but I don't want to have to go back to the station every 35 splinters. If I can find a way to make a new commodity called "waste" and convert splinters to the resource and "waste" ( compacted waste looks like a splinter handily enough ) then I can eject the waste when the cargo bay is full and have some target practice. For me that maintains the immersion.