Project Mercury X

[Urwumpe]

I have some PDFs about the Mercury communications. Not sure I am going to dive so deep into the details.

 

[Albatros]

tecnical reference

A remark to the pictures in my reply above: Most pictures showing the Command Center with the additions witch were made for the project Gemini. But when you substract the white parts in the picture No.16 from the black building, you have Mercury Control.

I know that you have already some pictures and tecnical drawings of the capsule, but here is the complete "Project Mercury familiarization manual" (Origin McDonnell Aircraft Corporation). There all all systems included witch were in the spacecraft.
NASA document 19740076527/Accession ID 74N74466:
http://naca.larc.nasa.gov/search.js...=all&Ntx=mode+matchall&Ns=HarvestDate%7c1&N=0

 

[Urwumpe]

Have SEDR104 already printed and indexed next to me, its hard to do something useful without the standard reference.

I also have found the report on "Mercury Redstone", that has some many details about it.

 

[4throck]

I have some PDFs about the Mercury communications. Not sure I am going to dive so deep into the details.

Talk is easy but I'd be more than happy if some "comunicating with traking station" message apeared when you passed in range of the stations. More interesting would be to receive updated orbital parameters from the ground stations... That way you could fly exactly as the astronaut.

 

[Urwumpe]

Talk is easy but I'd be more than happy if some "comunicating with traking station" message apeared when you passed in range of the stations. More interesting would be to receive updated orbital parameters from the ground stations... That way you could fly exactly as the astronaut.

I look at this. maybe somebody would have to write some Lua for that, I don't want to hard-code this.

 

[kerlix]

I would just like to say that I am incredibly excited for this add-on to be completed and compatible with Orbiter 2010. Please, by all means, take your time and don't rush things. I feel like this has amazing potential and can't wait for this to be available. I'll be checking often to see how the progress is going. Good luck and godspeed.

 

[4throck]

Thanks for the comments.
No rush here! Working on panel / instrument graphics is something I like to do for itself. Of course, now the motivation is stronger because I can contribute to a larger project. But I don't have any time tables and there's a lot of work ahead.
For example, I spend almost an hour searching the web for real electrical switches and push buttons images, just because I want to do it right.
Now I'm searching for a good quality inside cockpit footage of the control panel in flight. I know it exists for at least one of the missions. I need to see it to know how the several status indicators and buttons looked when lighted.

I know I'm a perfectionist but I don't see the point in doing it unless you get it right. Otherwise, we could always reuse the existing panel...

 

[Urwumpe]

Thanks for the comments.
No rush here! Working on panel / instrument graphics is something I like to do for itself. Of course, now the motivation is stronger because I can contribute to a larger project. But I don't have any time tables and there's a lot of work ahead.
For example, I spend almost an hour searching the web for real electrical switches and push buttons images, just because I want to do it right.
Now I'm searching for a good quality inside cockpit footage of the control panel in flight. I know it exists for at least one of the missions. I need to see it to know how the several status indicators and buttons looked when lighted.

I know I'm a perfectionist but I don't see the point in doing it unless you get it right. Otherwise, we could always reuse the existing panel...

Exactly - but more important is, from my point of view, that the old panel graphics are made for a older version of the OrbiterSDK. If I could do proper meshes, I would even prefer making a VC for Mercury, since I have more experience with them, but learning to make Panel2D based cockpits is also a nice experience.

My personal motivation is actually slightly different though, I still fight with getting the SSU thinking about accuracy away, for focusing on making Mercury use all features that the new API offers. Like having Lua. Or like using better aerodynamic functions. It must not be more capable or more accurate than the old Mercury 5.0 eventually, and even this level is a challenge, but it should be based on modern concepts in the API.

 

[IronRain]

I don't know if it is already posted but when I was checking the NASA site I ran into this: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/about/history/MCCgallery/index.html

I hope it's usefull

 

[4throck]

Urwumpe, we can do a "fake" 3D cockpit if that simplifies things on your end.
A simple cube will do, and we can project the panel textures on the inside faces. The texture maps I'm doing can be used for that. So it's more of a matter of implementation than anything else. Anyway, I need to get the panels done first!

 

[Bloodworth]

From an end users perspective, I like the idea of at least a nonfunctional vc, much preferably, a fully functional one. I tried the original mercury series several times and simply could not get into the feel of it because just having that panel there was ugly and distracting.

 

[Urwumpe]

Urwumpe, we can do a "fake" 3D cockpit if that simplifies things on your end.
A simple cube will do, and we can project the panel textures on the inside faces. The texture maps I'm doing can be used for that. So it's more of a matter of implementation than anything else. Anyway, I need to get the panels done first!

That is actually what Panel2D expects you to do. :lol:

 

[estar]

I don't do this Project Mercury add-on as real clean sheet design, but actually as some sort of illegitimate version of Rob Conleys (estar) Project Mercury. Tagging it with Ultra would be like I want to assimilate the project and despite the compatible licensing of SSU, it would be wrong. At least very unfair towards Rob Conley.

My open source feel free to take whatever or all portion you need for your project.

Out of the same reason, I found it unfair to name it Project Mercury 6.0, if it isn't even part of the original franchise. That is why I think "Project Mercury X" is the better name for this project. This way I don't slam the door behind Robert Conley, if he does a Project Mercury 6.0 himself one day in the future, this project won't prevent it or cause confusion

Distinct names between different project is good. Not just for me but for the new project developers as well. My hobby time has been consumed with family and other stuff for the past couple of years but I may get back into it at some point. But in the meantime it good that new folks pick up the ball and some out with something that distinctly their own.

Anyway the more the merrier I say. Good luck and have fun and if you have a technical question email at robertsconley at gmail dot com. I may not have time for programming but I certainly have time for that.

 

[Urwumpe]

Anyway the more the merrier I say. Good luck and have fun and if you have a technical question email at robertsconley at gmail dot com. I may not have time for programming but I certainly have time for that.

Thank you, I'll use that offer, I already have a huge list of subsystems with missing dimensions. Was one reason why most data is defined in the configuration file now.

 

[4throck]

Here's a small preview of the complete center panel, with all the switches in place, pointers removed and some cleanup. I need to polish some obvious processing artifacts and color some parts (like screws) but it's looking good to me.

 

[Urwumpe]

Looks already good to me, but the globe should be a transparent window... I can maybe do some fun with it. Maybe with the specular reflections still visible, because of the Panel2D system behind it, it should be at least possible to have the globe as 2D object there, I think I could even put a 3D globe there.

 

[estar]

Looks already good to me, but the globe should be a transparent window... I can maybe do some fun with it. Maybe with the specular reflections still visible, because of the Panel2D system behind it, it should be at least possible to have the globe as 2D object there, I think I could even put a 3D globe there.

I use OpenGL rendering to a hDC to put a 3D globe into the Earth Globe panel section. In an early version I had 2D scrolling map. The 3D version looked much better although you may have to tweak the rendering to get rid of some pixel artifacts.

 

[Urwumpe]

I use OpenGL rendering to a hDC to put a 3D globe into the Earth Globe panel section. In an early version I had 2D scrolling map. The 3D version looked much better although you may have to tweak the rendering to get rid of some pixel artifacts.

Yes, but the new Panel2D interface in Orbiters API works by defining a billboard mesh (constant orientation relative to the camera), with the classic 2D panels being textures of this billboard now.

The Deltaglider example code has quite some interesting stuff in it, I still work myself through this and its options.

If this permits having a 3D sphere in the billboard mesh, this is great, because the detour over OpenGL would no longer be needed, and all can be done inside the same rendering context.

 

[4throck]

I'll investigate about the globe texture and try to locate a suitable one. No point in simulating it and then using a modern map. It has to be something that they had in the early 60's.

 

[Urwumpe]

I'll investigate about the globe texture and try to locate a suitable one. No point in simulating it and then using a modern map. It has to be something that they had in the early 60's.

OK, I'll do a generic cockpit HUD view as well, which displays all indicators of the panel also as text.