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Thread: SoG Game Tracker App (windows)

  1. #51
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    Is there a user guide for this? I've spent ages sailing around but haven't actually got either a player or an AI controlled ship to fire yet

  2. #52
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    Quote Originally Posted by David Manley View Post
    Is there a user guide for this? I've spent ages sailing around but haven't actually got either a player or an AI controlled ship to fire yet
    I'm way over due for one. I will make one on how to walk through a phase from planning, actions, movement, combat, reload.

    I've been in creation mode so I hate to spend time documenting something that probably will change but a quick guide is warranted.

    Last of the maps update for now:
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  3. #53
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    Quote Originally Posted by Aaron View Post
    nice reference, they sure are orientated over quite a bit
    Thank you. I took it myself.

  4. #54
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    Quote Originally Posted by David Manley View Post
    Is there a user guide for this? I've spent ages sailing around but haven't actually got either a player or an AI controlled ship to fire yet
    Yes - follow this thread: https://sailsofglory.org/showthread....-%28Windows%29

  5. #55
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    Map is still coming along..need to add in the rest of the Leeward isles

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  6. #56
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    Had out of town family visit due to holidays. Had time to add a few more islands (st. kitt area)

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  7. #57
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    Small update as part of project HMI buff. View now behaves as google maps, click and drag to scroll view and mouse wheel controls zoom.

  8. #58
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    Added ability to snip out coastline from world map and add it to tactical map. This is the first time coastline meets ships on same map for my software.

    Here a British fleet sails past Martinique and observes a French fleet at anchor. Sloops scout ahead to take soundings as a screen of frigates look for targets of opportunity.
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    Two french sloops prepare to run ashore as the river is not accessible.
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    (note: land and ship is roughly to scale here 1/1000)

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    Last edited by Aaron; 12-27-2017 at 16:32.

  9. #59
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    All seems to be progressing very nicely.
    Rob.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

  10. #60
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    1/1/2018 New Years Day Update:
    I started implementing the world physics model for the ships which will support movement throughout the world map. The examples below is for a single yard (main mast topsail) for sailing 90 degrees with a true wind direction from the North. The second example is sailing 6 points off of the wind from the north. The curve on the right is the sail's lift (Red) and drag (blue) coefficients vs the Angle of Attack of the apparent wind (you are seeing the overlay over a raster image of real world tests so I can align my curves correctly).

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    One last example: sailing with the wind off the quarter deck.
    Note that the sail's force is generated more from drag than lift and that the apparent wind speed is a lot lower due to running with the wind.
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    The example above demonstrates that a captain could be at large sails running with the wind but if in strong winds he turns the ship the masts/sails can suddenly come under a lot of stress (over canvas). Beware!

    At this stage the sail force calculations are working and need to be rolled properly into the ship class. I still need to think about the masking effects of a sail blocking a leeward sail. Then the work of hull drag will start to attain final speed calculations.

    Happy New Years!
    Last edited by Aaron; 01-01-2018 at 13:38.

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    Very good. Now you will have an advanced understanding of the angles of square sails.

  12. #62
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    Quote Originally Posted by TexaS View Post
    Very good. Now you will have an advanced understanding of the angles of square sails.
    Yes, more than I ever wanted to know. It’s taken me on an unexpected journey for sure.

  13. #63
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    I don't frequent the Anchorage forums much anymore, but I did want to compliment you on the incredible work you've done on this project. I've played around with the program/tracker and it's quite good. It's a great substitute for solo play and saves a great deal of time involving set up and use of the minis. Keep up the fantastic work. Cheers!
    "It's not the towering sails, but the unseen wind that moves a ship."
    –English Proverb

  14. #64
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    Good to hear from you again Jim, and glad for your comments on the tracker.
    Aaron has put a heck of a lot of work into this project and your favourable comments from a man who has so much experience of ploughing the virtual seas is invaluable.
    Do keep in touch from time to time. I really enjoyed the posts you shared with us from your computerized Naval actions. It was a great pity that they spoilt it for you by changing the parameters of the game.
    Best wishes for 2018.
    Rob.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

  15. #65
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bligh View Post
    Good to hear from you again Jim, and glad for your comments on the tracker.
    Aaron has put a heck of a lot of work into this project and your favourable comments from a man who has so much experience of ploughing the virtual seas is invaluable.
    Do keep in touch from time to time. I really enjoyed the posts you shared with us from your computerized Naval actions. It was a great pity that they spoilt it for you by changing the parameters of the game.
    Best wishes for 2018.
    Rob.
    Thanks Rob. Happy New Years to you as well. There is news on Naval Action which I've posted in the original thread (linked below). I will check back regularly to see how Aaron progresses with this tracker. Thanks!

    https://www.sailsofglory.org/showthr...5532#post75532
    "It's not the towering sails, but the unseen wind that moves a ship."
    –English Proverb

  16. #66
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    Quote Originally Posted by Nightmoss View Post
    I don't frequent the Anchorage forums much anymore, but I did want to compliment you on the incredible work you've done on this project. I've played around with the program/tracker and it's quite good. It's a great substitute for solo play and saves a great deal of time involving set up and use of the minis. Keep up the fantastic work. Cheers!
    I’m glad you like it! Please check back as it will only get better!

  17. #67
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    Progress Update: The ship physics are moving right along. I am learning about sailing and coding at the same time. I just completed the first of the ship’s moment calculations, that being the sail plan moment about the center of gravity and the reactive heel force about the hulls wetted geometric lateral resistance center. When the net of these two moments are nonzero the ship will want to turn in the direction of the imbalance, which then will require helm to correct.

    I still have to model the stays and the spanker but the groundwork has been completed.

    Here is an example of a frigate showing the mast forces and the corresponding moment calculations showing a slight negative imbalance (ship would tend to turn counterclockwise - windward in this example)
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    BTW, my wife is due this month so when the newborn arrives my progress will be derailed for a time.
    Last edited by Aaron; 01-03-2018 at 13:58.

  18. #68
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    (Please see the bottom of this post for a couple of questions I need answers for, thank you in advance.)

    In anticipation for world travel mode / sea chases, I’ve already coded in sail degradation due to damage. Here is how it works:

    Sail and yard health:
    Generally each yard will have a single canvas (except when running studding sails). The canvas has both a port and a starboard half with a health variable between 0-1 (1=healthy). As the sails get shot through by chaser/bow cannons, the health will move towards zero. The effective sail area is the area of a sail times the health. Since the force of the sails is computed using physics the rigging will be impacted realistically.

    The yards are modeled in two discrete halves that either are whole or broken. Since most of the canvas is secured by an upper and lower yard (except course), when a yard half breaks then half of the area of the canvas is removed in the calculation, with the stipulation of if the half lost isn’t the leading edge for the wind. If it is the leading edge then the whole canvas is effectively removed from the motive force. I may keep the drag force for the special case of running with the wind. Since most yards impact two canvas, this also applies to the associated canvas above or below.

    Yard Brace rigging can also be damaged which precludes the ability to change the orientation of the yard until repaired.

    This damage model will play nice with the bow/stern chaser cannons during a protracted chase adding tension. Because the ships movement is physics based it is rather easy to interject damage and let the physics sort themselves out without special code.

    When tactical mode (SoG play) is entered then the damaged ships will start with sail hits (0-6)

    I need some info if someone knows this:
    * Once sails were damaged did they rip themselves apart or did they just keep working with initial holes keeping their shape?
    * typically how many cannon balls were available per cannon (both frigate and SOL)
    * which is faster, new tight sails or older loose sails that forms a deeper camber?
    Last edited by Aaron; 01-03-2018 at 14:12.

  19. #69
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    1/5/18 Update:
    I made significant progress on hull resistance calculations, I calculate viscous drag (plank, form, roughness) coefficients using ship dimensions and wave making resistance(Fr number, length) coefficients to determine the overall hull resistance. I still need to vary the wave resistance coefficients versus Fr number to mimic the bow and stern wave interactions at different speeds. This then will allow different ships to perform better at various speeds and not just top speed with best wind. Here are some sample calculations so far at various wind speeds and angles off the wind to obtain max speed:
    Note for all cases the wind is out of the north. The hull coefficients are displayed at X100 since they are a small numbers.
    Also the rudder drag, staysails and spanker are not modeled yet nor heel angle. The mizzen course sail is not bent in this example.

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    At lower wind 10 knots, can only manage around 70 degrees off of true wind direction
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    The rest are at a higher wind speed of 35 knots
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    Highest speed of the group. (true wind direction is south, so wind is broad reach here)
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    Last edited by Aaron; 01-05-2018 at 17:14.

  20. #70
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    Update 1/7/18: (Wave Making Resistance - for world travel speeds)

    I've almost exhausted the interwebs of free wave making resistance study material. I've incorporated the wave resistance coefficient curves that are found commonly in publications. The net effect for this game is that a particular ship hull design will perform well at certain speeds where the family of hull waves act together to minimize waves (the hollow part of the curve). On the other hand there will be speeds that the hull does not like due to amplification effects of said family of waves (the humps). I've gotten my physics engine to reflect this behavior. The only "drag" (pun intended) about this is that data is not available nor can it be empirically determined. This means these wave coeff curves will have to be "winged" or "makeup" for each major ship hull family and adjusted to reflect any observations logged in the 18th century such as "ship was fast with strong winds but slow under light winds".

    Here's a few examples showing ship speeds compared to true wind speeds at wave effect peaks and lows. All of this technical jargon amounts to sea chases playing out differently under light and heavy winds just as they did in real life.

    The heading is constant at 136 degrees and the braces were adjusted for each case to maximize sail forward driving force.
    Below is an example of light winds where most of the resistance is made up of viscous drag. The ship is capable of obtaining 57% of the true wind speed.
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    Here the ship is a little over 6 knots and from the curve to the right where the dotted gray line meet, it is at a poor performance spot (wave effects are amplified). The ship is only capable of 40% of the true wind speed.
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    Here is the opposite case of the ship sailing now at a favorable speed in regards to wave effects. The curve and gray line are meeting at a hollow. At 9.25 knots the ship is making 46% of the true wind speed.
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    Finally, a top speed test with 30 knot winds. The wave effect is dominating and the ship is only capable of 37% of the true wind speed. Notice how the red curve only rises from that point; the top speed is limited by the bow and stern waves boxing the ship in.
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    So from a programming standpoint, I feel my sailing engine is now sufficient to produce "realistic" results with the right data input. I'm now moving on to making the world map code that will track the ships sailing about the oceans. Here is another can of worms I'm about to open as I am going to place Trade winds, etc, tidal currents on the map and vary them with the seasons. In net this will encourage ships to use the real routes.

    I am getting closer to having a common server that we can all join together. The rest of the pieces just need built first.

    Later...
    Last edited by Aaron; 01-07-2018 at 21:21.

  21. #71
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    I am even more impressed with your facility for designing this aspect of realism into the game Aaron. For the larger scale picture of fleets moving great distances it adds an extra dimension that I never expected to see.
    Weathering a tempest around Cape Horn seems to be something which we may all be able to experience for ourselves in the future rather than just reading about it in a novel.
    Rob.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

  22. #72
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bligh View Post
    I am even more impressed with your facility for designing this aspect of realism into the game Aaron. For the larger scale picture of fleets moving great distances it adds an extra dimension that I never expected to see.
    Weathering a tempest around Cape Horn seems to be something which we may all be able to experience for ourselves in the future rather than just reading about it in a novel.
    Rob.
    Cruising at the speed of the slowest vessel in the fleet had to be frustrating. And during a chase, do you send out your fast ships and split the group? Can’t wait for this.

  23. #73
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    Frigates sir Frigates! The eyes of the Fleet.
    Bligh.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

  24. #74

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    Quote Originally Posted by Aaron View Post
    (Please see the bottom of this post for a couple of questions I need answers for, thank you in advance.)


    snip


    I need some info if someone knows this:
    * Once sails were damaged did they rip themselves apart or did they just keep working with initial holes keeping their shape?
    * typically how many cannon balls were available per cannon (both frigate and SOL)
    * which is faster, new tight sails or older loose sails that forms a deeper camber?
    As for the sails I believe they kept shape at least with round shot holes, bar and chain shot may be different. An important consideration is for damage to the rigging in general not just shot holes in the sails. That is what tended to disable a ship, shot up running and standing rigging (which also accounted for masts falling). This is one element lacking in the "Naval Action" PC game combat simulation.

    Somewhere I read the amount of powder and shot the Constitution carried but I can't put my finger on it atm. There are archives with this information. The logs of the Constitution do mention the crew making up cartridges, which means that a ship carried a certain amount of shot and powder made ready for firing as well. One other point is that special shot like chain, bar and grape was carried in much lower quantities than round shot. The RN in particular did not carry much in the way of dismantling shot, preferring to go in and smash the hull rather than the rigging.

    I think Harland may have an answer on the sails. Think about it this way, 17th century ships carried larger and looser more billowy sails, subsequently in the 18th and 19 century sails evolved into smaller and tighter forms.

    Lastly your program looks amazing. Keep up the work.

  25. #75
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    If sails would rip apart or not would be very much dependent on the wind. At low winds they get holed. At very high winds they tear.

  26. #76
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    Thanks gents for the info. I also read that ships carry different weight of sails, heavy for storms but tended to sag. Light sails for light winds which they held their shape better. Anyone hear the same?

    Also, a small progress update: I'm working on a ship plan creator. This will solve two problems for me, one is the side view profile of the ships. I wanted to display a side view when looking out through a telescope to help in identifying the ships that you run across. Also I need some calculations of the hull buoyancy for heeling calculations. This will kill two birds.

    Plus, for your own ship view I would like to have it sitting in the water, showing a cut away of the decks with crew walking about. Eventually this may feed into a damage model where cannon shots will hit and impact and hit unlucky crew but that one is low priority for now.

    Anyway, here is about 4 hours of progress on the designer. The ship isn't a particular ship, it is just me using the designer to build it better. It's crude but a good start.

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    I also started sketching up fleet movement and AI and how they will follow your flagship/leadship. It's going to be a fun challenge to take into account the wind when determining best course, intercepts, etc. It's all on graph paper at the moment.

  27. #77

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    Yes there are storm sails that are heavier than normal canvas. Usually the storm sails would be small stay sails or a storm jib like you would still see today. You are likely talking about very high winds and sea states though, gale force. At this point a ship would also have taken down the royal masts and housed t'gallants or even top masts. Here is an excerpt from the journal of Lt. Woolsey about the Constitution getting caught in gale force to hurricane winds:

    "6 Mar 1807 ‑ Consul General Lear returned to the ship. Sailed at1100 for Algiers "with light baffling winds and very thick hazey weather‑‑ At 5 the wind shifted to NW took in the studding sails royals and topgallant sails ‑‑ the wind freshening took 2 reefs in the topsails we haul'd up the mainsail At 1/2 past 5 the gale increasing took the 3d reef in the topsails‑‑ At 7 a very severe gale coming on clewed up the topsails and foresail, carried away the starbd foretack bumpkin and larbd foresheet ‑‑ split & partly carried away the mainsail though hawled up in the brails‑‑ The gale increasing to a hurricane attempted to set fore and mizen storm staysails the halliards of the former parted and the latter blew out of the bolt ropes Handed all the topsails — At 10 PM the gale had increased to such a pitch that in order to save the main yard and prevent the ship drifting as much as possible on a lee shore sent hands up to cut the torn mainsail from the yard all rigging being carried away except the clew garnets -‑ a very small piece of the sail fell inboard‑‑ At 1/2 past 11 after much difficulty and danger to those aloft got the topgallant yards on deck & housed the topgallant masts ‑‑ At the same time set the fore & main storm staysail [sic] ‑‑ From 7 PM until 1 o'Clock at night we were lying up to the WSW & off to Sw 1/2 S at which time we discovered the land on our lee beam which appeared to raise very fast‑‑ From 10 till 1/2 past 1 we sounded in from 50 to 25 fathoms water muddy bottom we got up a range of three Cables double bitted and a carpenter standing by to cut away the masts‑‑ At 1/2 half past 1 the wind abated a little and at the same time hawled more to the Westd wore ship & set close reefed topsails and storm mizen it still blowing a very heavy gale of wind with a tremendous sea heaving in from the Northd—. The ship pitched very heavy & made 6 inches water pr hour – washed away all the head‑‑ At 3 AM took in the mizen topsail & hawled up the foresail At 4 AM we discovered the Island of Imbres ESE of us about 4 miles dist At 6 we bore up fore Cape Bon‑‑ At 8 we hawled upon a wind round the Cape for the Eastd under storm staysails and close reefed maintopsail‑‑ There were fifty two men in the surgeons return of the sick in the morning & most of them ill with bruises recd in the night‑‑" "

    Gives you an example of a sequence that sails were taken in under increasing wind strength.

  28. #78
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    Ah ok so this wasn't a set of sails they switch out for 30kts wind vs 15 kts. This was more for keeping orientation during a storm.

    BTW, I got more done on the ship plan designer. I had to account for sloping water lines like on the clipper. These are still rough tries but the tool is getting better.

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  29. #79

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    Right. It was not like today with ocean racing yachts where you have multiple sets of sails weighted for different wind conditions.

  30. #80
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    Update 1/12/18: The Game Weather

    So, as my recent posts go, I've been hard at work on realistic sailing physics (both wind and water forces on the ship). It would do little good of having a good physics model ship sailing about in a poorly modeled environment. In other words, if the wind isn't modeled correctly then why go through the trouble of modeling a sail that uses that wind. Ive looked at several options ranging from making my own simple model, using an existing one (haven't looked hard), or in lieu of that, just using the the current weather or a snapshot of it.

    An interesting way is to use the current weather and overlay it on the world map. This would add to the whole feel of the game being more grounded to our world since it will be persistent. The negative of this is that the weather will run at real time and the game will be 7 times faster.

    Or, more probable, I could also just have a set of distinct data for the seasons (old snapshots - these are available) and load them in according to season. My first try will be just to load the current weather and keep it static for a time and refresh it slowly.

    Anyway, so how would this work? I would take the public available GFS weather data for the world and use software (which I already am trying out) to read the data and store it in lat/long grids. I would then overlay this data on my world map which also has the lat/long cords. The weather data would reside in grids that you sail through. Each grid has a wind, wave, etc data that drives your ships.

    Once the wind is known, the ocean swell and waves can then be calculated using wind strength, how long it has been blowing at that strength, to output fetch length, wave height, wave frequency, wave length, swell speed, etc.

    Here's an example of GFS data from the site https://earth.nullschool.net:

    This is from today: This is the wind pattern for the Atlantic.
    Name:  windmap.JPG
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    Anyway.. I hope to have an example of at least wind strength overlaid on my world map this weekend if things go well.

  31. #81
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    Got the wind data transposed to my world map. The next step is to build the actual wind grids that the ships will reside in. The result below basically took all day to do due to my lack of knowledge of translating GRIB files. I need a shot of rum after this.

    This is the wind field at every 1 degree lat/long. The data has twice of the resolution that I am displaying here (half of degree), so I could quadruple(x and y direction) the wind fields on the map if i wanted to.
    Name:  windzone.jpg
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    BTW. the data was a snapshot from 3/11/2015 18:00
    Last edited by Aaron; 01-12-2018 at 20:59.

  32. #82
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    Your orders Sir: Sail at once from Spithead to Brest and scout for enemy activity

    Captain: Prepare to tack.. 30 knot head winds up the channel... yikes

    Name:  windycoast.jpg
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    (GFS data from Jan 12th 2018 - 0.5 degree resolution grid)

  33. #83
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    1/22/18 Update: (+9 days since last update)
    A lot has happened at the home front since my last update, as some of you know I’m now a father (3 times at that) to a healthy baby boy. The newest addition is soaking up mom’s attention so I am filling that role for my 6 and 5 year old boys. Needless to say game progress has slowed but I’m still making headway, I just have more leeway to manage. That said:

    Since my seat time in front of the computer coding is currently spotty at best, I’ve taken to pen and paper or napkin and am fleshing out the missing pieces of the ship physics. As demonstrated above I already have a working model for longitude hull forces and sail forces. I knew I needed to shore up the lateral maneuvers and yaw rates. I’ve managed to absorb a couple of chapters on hydrodynamics and have the motion equations plugged into a spreadsheet for testing. This work has led into an interesting study in how the water flows around the hull producing side forces and moments. When all is said and done the ship will possibly sail like the real thing, including turn rates and leeway working themselves out based on hull and mass distribution.

    It’s funny, I wasn’t aiming for a sailing simulator but my search for ship performance data has led me down that path.

    I’ve also made progress on my ship plan designer. It now can take sections of the hull and outputs buoyancy data. Mass distribution will also enter into this tool which then plugs into the motion equations. She then will be ready for sea trials.

    All of this is number crunching at the moment so there isn’t really anything to take screenshots of. Once I get her sailing I will look into getting a few videos taken of some maneuvers.

  34. #84
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    This is all very exciting Aaron.
    You may inadvertently be providing those of us who write AARs with some very useful research material to flesh out our games to say nothing of the asset it will be for the boring bits in a campaign. Sailing half way around the world may suddenly become much more challenging.
    Rob.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

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    1/25/18:(whispering update as not to wake the baby)

    I added two constraints to the sails, one being that they require a minimum of 20 degrees angle of attack off the apparent wind to "fill" and produce work. The other is I added the backing force direction for sails working against the wind. The 20 degree constraint is interesting because now the "closest" close haul angle changes with apparent wind speed and the best travel upwind isn't the steepest and slowest, its a balance which makes "captaining" fun.

    Setting up a tack here.. i know not what I am doing... (there are men jumping overboard, choosing death over laughing and the lashings of their captain)
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    Using 3 knots speed: With a light breeze this is the closest I could get before the sails lost their air (less than 20)
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    With more wind I could get closer to the eye (again at 3 kts)
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    Here's two examples of beating into the wind, one at a slower speed and steeper into the wind and the other faster speed but not as steep, who is making better ground upwind? (i know the answer, but there is no leeway on the ships here or waves bashing the front)
    Name:  beating1.JPG
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    Name:  beating2.JPG
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    Time to sign off, must get the crew to school
    Last edited by Aaron; 01-25-2018 at 05:30.

  36. #86
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    My apologies for the quality of video but I wanted to demo the current physics model.
    The red arrow is the velocity vector which is showing some leeway which is good. The PID is a controller that is trying to maintain a dialed in heading. Surge is the forward speed in feet per second.

    Time is accelerated and the rudder force is excessive to show motion and response testing:
    https://youtu.be/iozDpX3plp4

  37. #87
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    A very clear demo model Aaron.
    I'm sure that will be of interest to a lot of shipmates including some of those not intending to use the App.
    Thanks.
    Rob.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

  38. #88
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    When you feel you have the time (when your newly born moves out) you can start thinking on the sails blocking each others.

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    Quote Originally Posted by TexaS View Post
    When you feel you have the time (when your newly born moves out) you can start thinking on the sails blocking each others.
    Hahah! I’m trying to tack without a spanker and headsails, tough to do!

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    2/6/18 update:
    Hello all, reporting in.. the newborn is over 2 weeks old now and doing well.

    The game status: awesomeness 10/10 :)
    The real-time sailing physics are shaping up nicely. Since my last update i have modeled a rudder. Now the ship is a bear to handle at slow speeds due to the low rudder forces, must use the sails to maneuver.

    I also am beefing up the sails animation so the captain can tell when his sails are filled, luffing, or aback.

    (Apologies for phone video of my screen but it’s all I have to work with at the moment)

    Here is a quick demo of luffing:
    https://youtu.be/D5oBHqirliw

    Here is a tack but not by the books as I haven’t rigged up independent yard rotation. The corrrect way would be to first rotate main and mizzen on the new tack first. There is a small known graphics glitch but I will crush it at lunch time during my work break.
    https://youtu.be/lXjhB24SM9w

    Small lunch break update:
    Better tack and wear: (hard to crew and film)
    Wear: https://youtu.be/y-bmEbnoGDc
    Tack: https://youtu.be/lVBT_6lCVKw
    Last edited by Aaron; 02-06-2018 at 11:58.

  41. #91
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    Great to follow your updates.

    As a sidenote: When you finally realize you have made a complete computer game in the age of sails and start selling it, I will buy a copy.
    This beginning to take it's own life and is now much more than an aid to Sails of Glory.

  42. #92
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    From little acorns great three deckers grow.
    Rob.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

  43. #93
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    I’m still in forced denial that I’ve made a new game. I’m still in the ‘learn’ about 18th century naval combat mode. The universe is against me though as I will soon be working 6 12-hour shifts for a month straight starting March 23. I will prevail though.

    On topic:
    I’m learning I need to add staysails, spanker and headsails to try and get a more neutral helm as it seems to favor a heavy weather helm at the moment. Also I worked on a little surprise today for this now ‘new game’. I will post some shots of it this weekend but it adds a new element.

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    Aaron, you should really talk to Rob at Ares about taking this online as their first Digital Game. I'm envisioning some kind of deal where as they release new minis, they slip a code into each box to unlock the online counterpart...

    Seriously, this just BEGS for a huge screen like the pool-table at 5-O Headquarters or the Jumbotron Wall at NCIS OSP in L.A. :)
    --Diamondback
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  45. #95
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    What a great idea DB.
    Rob.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

  46. #96
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    2-12-18 update: I worked on boat physics as I plan to use these to shuttle between shore and ship, pulling becalmed ships, kedging anchor, for prize crew transfer and to go accept surrender from a struck ship.

    Name:  EAE08358-8B14-41E4-A523-A3A40DCE22E9.jpg
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    Video of laptop screen showing boat moving:
    https://youtu.be/1bZvtbWUiIU

    (The blue dots are standin water effects, not part of final)
    Last edited by Aaron; 02-12-2018 at 06:42.

  47. #97
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    It will be very interesting to see what speeds they can attain. I have only been able to guess the speed of ships boats on the scale for movement in our games. how many knots do you think a crew rowed ships boat could attain?
    Rob.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

  48. #98
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bligh View Post
    It will be very interesting to see what speeds they can attain. I have only been able to guess the speed of ships boats on the scale for movement in our games. how many knots do you think a crew rowed ships boat could attain?
    Rob.
    Good question, I didn’t apply the same hydrodynamics rigor to the boat as the ships. Right now I am assigning both a port and starboard paddle force. By applying force only one side causes the boat to turn about the center of gravity. I believe the boats had tillers? I haven’t included one as of yet. I’m planning on just fudging a coefficient of drag to reach a reasonable speed. I will adjust the paddle force so that several boats can pull a ship a knot or two ( I need to look up again what they could).

    I’ve been wanting to add boats for awhile now. Next up is to add towing lines and see how the physics play out. I have an anchor on the ship but it acts more like a rubber band so I need to redo it.
    Last edited by Aaron; 02-12-2018 at 15:29.

  49. #99
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    So last night my wife asked me why the ship’s towed boats didn’t flow like the rest of the physics. I explained that it was rendered to the back of the ship with a locked heading. I feel that if a nongamer calls me out on something I should fix it.

    Here is the improved edition:
    https://youtu.be/RsF9x6oL5GM

  50. #100
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    They seem to be doing a pretty good imitation of towed boats now Aaron.
    Rob.
    The Business of the commander-in-chief is first to bring an enemy fleet to battle on the most advantageous terms to himself, (I mean that of laying his ships close on board the enemy, as expeditiously as possible); and secondly to continue them there until the business is decided.

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