[Feature] Allow 'spiral' to go clockwise or counter clockwise?
Closed this issue · 19 comments
What is the problem this feature/enhancement solves?
I might have missed it, or there is a current case of PEBCAK, but when I chose the 'spiral' layout it'll always go counterclockwise. Which means harvesters unload point is always on the crop's side.
I would like the spiral layout to go clockwise instead, which allows the unload trucks to not go through the unharvested crop field.
Describe the solution you'd like
Let the Spiral layout follow a (counter)clockwise setting, just like can be done with the headlands
Describe alternatives you've considered
None really. i tried the headlands direction setting, hoping it would work, but it did not :-(
Additional context
Not really.
None really. i tried the headlands direction setting, hoping it would work, but it did not :-(
Headland should consider CW/CCW setting.
What do you try to do with the Spiral layout?
Headland should consider CW/CCW setting.
The headland considers the CW/CCW settings. I was somewhat hoping the spiral setting would as well.
What do you try to do with the Spiral layout?
I would like a layout where the Combine's Pipe is always pointing outwards, not inwards.
But it seems the spiral layout is always CCW, which means the pipe is always pointing to the inside of the field.
Have you tried the 'Lands' pattern? (with even number of rows in a land)
For Combines I can recommend you 2-3 Headlands (wich are outside the fruit if choose the right direction, pipe on the left ist CW).
And then as pvaiko said, Center pattern lands, try it with 6 for the start, for bigger fields a bigger numer works fine too.
Spirals pattern is good for rather narrow fields where convoys of combines and/or active unloaders are working. Reason for the problem is, that pipe side isn't considered right now for the fieldrows of spiral courses. It currently only depends on where the start point and thus the transition from headland to center is, if the pipe on field rows is always outside the fruit or always inside.
But this issue here is duplicate of #7
I shall have a look at the land pattern next harvest season! I shall update this issue if I get a better/different/other/good result
I'm in the camp that there should be some way to specify to a harvester when doing spirals to ensure it does so with the pipe on the opposite side to the crop so that unloaders have free access at all times to the pipe for unloading. Right now it all seems to be very much a lottery depending on how many headlands you set to do first, as to whether or not after doing the headlandfs whether it's then going to continue harvesting the the rest of the field with the pipe stuck in the crop or not. As I tend to do harvesting in combination with Autodrive doing the unloading and transporting from the harvester, anything that can make life easier for the Autodrive workers would be appreciated, especially as that mod has quite a few issues still in the Harvesting/Loading Department and sadly doesn't look like it's ever going to get an update, with the last coming way back in July. I really need to have Courseplay provide as simple and easy method of harvesting fields so that other workers or autodrive can play much nicer with it or hopefully run into less issues and collisions.
@cwattyeso First of all, Courseplay has its own combine unloader back now.
And yes, I know it would be nice, and sounds like a trivial change, but the way the generator implemented now does not make this an easy task. I'll think about it.
In the meanwhile, how about adding as much headlands as you can?
Yeah I saw Courseplay has an Unloader option, but haven't yet played with this feature, because I've not seen any tutorials or instructions anywhere on how it works. I tried using it the other day on a map during a large field harvesting, but kept getting a message from the trailer when trying to start the combine unloader task that it couldn't because it was full or something.
It's not a lottery, but strictly depending on the starting point of the course and the resulting headland transitions: look into the issue #7 where I depicted where you have to place the starting point to be sure already today, that the spirals field rows are worked in the correct direction.
Normally a setting shouldn't be needed at all. Just a pipe side logic (which already exists for the lands pattern) should be used as well for spirals pattern. But don't know how complicated it is to be integrated into the course generator for spirals.
Apart from that, if your field is not too narrow, lands pattern (which is working perfectly already today) should be favoured over spirals anyway.
Don't know mich about starting point logic, but I always have my starting point at the midpoint on the straightest edge of the field, as close to the entry point to the field. This way a harvester is not having to travel miles from the field arrival point to actually begin work if using the Autodrive/Courseplay combination, and also ensures a harvester is not starting too close to a corner or curve on the field which can cause it to do weird stuff. As for my up and down rows then or spirals, I always manually set the direction to either 0/180 degrees or 90/270 degrees depending on the size and shape of the field, to ensure the Harvester is doing the longest rows and not doing loads of short rows, as again when using Autodrive to do unloading, short rows make it a nightmare for the trailer to actually get in position and unload the harvester before it's at the end of the row and turning or driving off somewhere else and the Autodrive guy starts doing that annoying reversing and backing crap before it's reached the end of the row and finished emptying the harvester.
Yeah I saw Courseplay has an Unloader option, but haven't yet played with this feature, because I've not seen any tutorials or instructions anywhere on how it works.
See https://github.com/Courseplay/Courseplay_FS22/releases/tag/7.1.1.0
to ensure the Harvester is doing the longest rows and not doing loads of short rows,
Courseplay has logic to find the direction which results in the lowest number of rows in auto mode, or for the longest, you could use 'longest edge'. But if all your fields are rectangular and oriented to the cardinal directions, it does not really matter...
Will give it a try next time I'm in game. I'm guessing the reason it didn't work when I attempted it the other day was I was using normal Giants AI to drive my potato harvesters up and down the field, and you say the harvesters must be courseplay helpers. Also I was using a Truck and Trailer to unload, and you say it only works with Tractor and Trailer, so again when doing such contracts need to check the offered equipment first and adjust if needed to ensure I have tractors and trailers to do the unloading. I might also have been using Trailers with two hoppers, and that might have confused things, if one bin was full and the other empty, hence why when trying to start the unloader it kept telling me the trailer was full.
to ensure the Harvester is doing the longest rows and not doing loads of short rows,
Courseplay has logic to find the direction which results in the lowest number of rows in auto mode, or for the longest, you could use 'longest edge'. But if all your fields are rectangular and oriented to the cardinal directions, it does not really matter...
That's the problem for me I guess and having looked at the example given in #7 I do not play on maps with small fields like in those screenshot examples and don't play a lot of maps with square or rectangle fields, as this is compeltely unnatural to me in a real world example, I also find them very boring to play in game, but hey I'm not here to get into the argument about square fields being unrealistic and rather lazy of map makers. So in my case when playing the game, it's not always easy to see which is the longest edge on a field due to their weird and wonderful shapes and large size. The reason I manually tend to set Courseplay to drive in the cardinal directions of 0/180 or 90/270 is purely because that's what the regular Giants AI worker seems to pick and use due them typically following the limited terrain angles within the map, so I just keep all AI working the same for less collisions and entanglements, when running multiple vehicles on the same fields and performing different tasks at the same time.
I also prefer irregularly shaped large fields, but those rectangular fields are easiest to describe and depict what you have to take care about when placing the starting point. Coz' the logic where you have to place it to get spirals mode working already today (first half of a 'short edge') remains the same, no matter what size and shape your fields have. Once you understood it for those rectangular fields you're also able to get working positions on irregular fields. Once you've generated the first course, you even know for the weirdest shaped fields which directions the field rows will have (and if you set the angle manually you even know beforehand), and you can then place the starting point accordingly until the course is generated as desired. That's not the final longterm solution of course, but for now it's a good workaround until also spirals pattern has a pipe side logic.
And again as already said by Tensuko and me: spirals is only appropriate for rather narrow fields. On larger fields you should rather go for lands pattern instead (just take care that you set an even number of rows per land in the course generator).
I shall have a look at the land pattern next harvest season! I shall update this issue if I get a better/different/other/good result
So, I promised to get back on this, the lands-feature works pretty OK indeed. For me personally it solves my issue. But I see there is some related discussion going on.
just take care that you set an even number of rows per land in the course generator
odd numbers should work now (on the main branch and soon in the next release)
Specifying direction for spiral is something that I'd also like. I'm harvesting potatoes with the Ventor 4150 which, as opposed to almost all other harvester, have the pipe on the right side. I've tried to generate a course with spiral that would put the pipe on the non-fruit side, but have not been able to do so.
The only way I can make it work is by maxing out the number of headlands, but spiral with direction would work much better for that (large) machine.