[X3TC] Mobile Mining CLS Help??

[kriscorrie]

Hello,

I have a small mobile mining operation in CSW, that im looking to expand, but im having trouble getting the settings for External Commodity Logistics working just right, and im hoping you guys can help.

Ok the setup;

4 x Mercurys "collecting rocks" in CSW
1 x Mercury Tanker to transfer the rocks from the mercurys to TWO different stations.
Supplying...
1 x Silicon Mine in Ringo Moon (with two CAGs selling Silicon)
1 x ChipPlex in Argon Prime

So the setup for ECL i thought would work is,

Miner 1 - Load Full Cargo
Miner 2 - Load Full Cargo
Miner 3 - Load Full Cargo
Miner 4 - Load Full Cargo
Unload @ Silicon Mine - 50% Cargo
Unload @ ChipPlex - 50% Cargo

but it never seems to make the second station, and a lot of the time just sits with a full cargo hold.

Any ideas where im going wrong?

[whiteraider]

CLS2 for me doesnt even turn on unless the the pilot is at it's homebase... (since 3.2)
I also find 'What I think will work' does something else - usually very very dumb!!!

Is the Silcon mine full?
What level is the pilot?

Also could you collect from 2-4 deliver to one station then return & collect then deliver to the 2nd before the miners are full?

i.e.
Collect from miner 1
collect from miner 2...
deliver SM
Collect from miner 3
collect from miner 4...
deliver CP

Training CAG/CLS Pilots

Using Commodity Logistics Software to Automate your TL Storage Solution.

My current project is finding a way to wait until there's a cargohold + (at least) a cycles buffer in the station before moving the excess...

[Relicalchaos]

If anything, instead of using values 50%, use values of 35/40%.

I'm sure your ship is carrying extra cargo like E-cells? or equipment is taking up room?

Alternative solution;

Invest in an OTAS XL (or TL if you have the money). Its speed might not be spectacular, but its cargo makes up for it. Set your miners just collect rocks in sector. Have your original Mercury tanker (the one that was used for transporting to 2 stations) assigned to gather Ore, silicone etc. ALL from each miner, then set the last waypoint to unload to the OTAS . Invest in another mercury (or 2. Each one assign homebase to each station), assign to load goods X (from OTAS) and unload to station, then go back to load (from OTAS) other resource and unload to station.

You have to set each WARE you want to load i.e

Load Ore, Load Silicone Miner 1, Load ore, Load silicone Miner 2, etc. etc. etc. Unload Ore, unload silicone OTAS... ETC. ETC.

Edit* Using the system takes allot of trial and error. Assign homebases etc. And I agree, sometimes its something so simple to fix. I prefer a Closed Loop complex myself.

[Vyrebird]

So the setup for ECL i thought would work is,

Miner 1 - Load Full Cargo
Miner 2 - Load Full Cargo
Miner 3 - Load Full Cargo
Miner 4 - Load Full Cargo
Unload @ Silicon Mine - 50% Cargo
Unload @ ChipPlex - 50% Cargo

but it never seems to make the second station, and a lot of the time just sits with a full cargo hold.

Any ideas where im going wrong?

The 'full/half' cargobay options rarely worked out well for me. As Relicalchos pointed out, the 'other' stuff on the freighter, like shields and jumpfuel, take up nontrivial amounts of space, and they can eat up your "minimum load/unload %" margins quite quickly if you use the 'full/half' cargo settings. Better to load up the freighter with all its ECs, shields, weapons, fighter drones, etc, then fill it with as much of the cargo (e.g. silicon wafers) as will fit, and manually use that number for all of the loads & unloads.

That could be the reason for never unloading at the ChipPlex - if it already unloaded half of the max cargobay's worth of silicon at the Silicon Mine, it'd likely only have around 30% or so left filled with silicon afterward. Alternatively, if the Tankers can keep the Collectors relatively empty, the Tankers might be leaving as soon as they hit the minimum delivery percentage for the Silicon Mine, and thus are left empty when they get to the ChipPlex stage.

Personally, for trying to supply both facilities, I'd just have the Tankers deliver to only one, and then use CLS1 to spread the silicon from that first, CLS2-served facility to the second facility.


None of that explains the Tankers sitting idle but full, however. My best guess for that would be either something misconfigured (turn on the logs in the External Logistics settings for them, and see if they say anything suspicious), or if they're "stuck" because their hold is full of one thing while they need another - like being full of Silicon Wafers when they try to refuel their jump energy or somesuch.

Just checking, those are both "Unload", not "Unload up to", right?