Alternate APC functionality and battery racks

[Midaychi]

 

Iunno. Apcs work as is but it might be neater to have them work like this, and also you could simplify/centralize how they work both ingame and in code.

 

First change: Copy pasta atmospherics console into engineering and retool it to be able to remotely control apcs that have remote enabled. Secure areas like telecomms and the AI stuff have remote disabled by default, and AI/cyborg access to apcs is unchanged as is.

 

Second: Remove batteries and battery functionality from apcs, and simplify them and their code to be node switches. You can turn lights/atmospherics/equipment on/off, but no longer do they handle charging or have their own internal backup.

 

Third: Add in battery racks. I'm pretty sure bay has something vaguely similar already but I've never used it so idk.

There'd be two versions: The standard and ghetto version. Both versions would allow you to change batteries on the fly, but they require insulated gloves OR for the rack to be un-wrenched (or for the switch to be turned off on the standard version) first

 

Both battery racks are manual control only, and cyborgs need to be standing next to it to access the interface on the standard version.

 

Ghetto version would be constructable with metal and a cable coil and wirecutters and a screwdriver. Once complete, you get a portable machine that can have a few batteries inserted. It has no interface, can remove batteries with a crowbar, disassemble when empty with screwdriver+crowbar, and can be turned on/off by wrenching it over a wire knot. This device cannot charge the contained batteries, only draw off them.

 

If emp'd, the contained batteries will dump all their charge and blow the lights dependant on how much charge was in them, so a few standard batteries might not do anything, a few high cap batteries might blow the nearest apc's lights, and a few super cap batteries might blow a few nearby apc's lights. ( A new use for emp grenades. Taking out power/lights)

 

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The Standard version is a bit harder to construct, and is more of a standard machine frame thing, requiring capacitors and possibly a board from an imprinter. Fundamentally lower requirements than an smes and level 1 data and engineering requirement for research. It could however, have an interface to turn it on/off and the ability to change how much power is being provided to the subnet.

Standard version also has smes-like functionality, in which you can deploy a terminal to charge from, so you can use it as a buffer.

 

Standard version is also unaffected by emp due to shielding and proper regulation, and doesn't have the same problems with discharging as the ghetto version.

 

Fourth: Pre-map a standard battery rack in a secure department-accessible location for each area. IE: Medbay, security, telecoms, whatever.

 

Example: The science rack could only be accessible by scientists, or even just the RD depending on how you wanted to do it.

 

Each rack would feed off the main power grid, but serve as a service buffer for powering its area.

 

Fifth and finally: To allow powersinks to still be useful, they have technology that sucks charge in reverse from racks, but this technology doesn't work on SMES.

 

End functionality: You can still depower the station, smes and powersink interaction unchanged, and have the additional ability to isolate an area specifically for draining power from with a little creative quick wire-work.

 

Edited June 29, 2015 by Guest

[BiberDark]

I saw this on bay they had fuses for different departments to enable or dissable . On top of that they hat battery racks to improve /safe power supply.

[veganzombeh]

I'm not 100% sure, but I think battery racks on Bay are just a ghetto SMES.