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MSFS Discus-2b Glider (Developement Thread)

Messages
70
Country
us-florida
This thread will feature development on the Schempp-Hirth Discus Glider. This is my first Native MSFS project, so I started small and hope to get as much community support throughout development. Model was primarily designed by rohr3dsolutions and I've taken a hard look over for rework and sim incorporation, making changes big or small. This will be a Freeware product featured on FlightSim.to (UPDATE: and on Flight Sim Squadron) when in stable release whilst using @thealx Cloud Assistant tool for flight.
SmartSelect_20210111-170342_Emb3D.jpg


11-JAN-21: Starting more work on the Schempp-Hirth Discus Glider. Worked animations in Cinema4D today and translated them over to Blender so I could edit the materials with the Blender2MSFS toolkit. Hoping to start working it into the MSFS SDK tomorrow, going to look into the Simple Aircraft project file heavily. Pictures of progress below:

Screenshot_20210111-143859_Video Player.jpg
Screenshot_20210111-143914_Video Player.jpg
Screenshot_20210111-143924_Video Player.jpg
Screenshot_20210111-143941_Video Player.jpg
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244
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unitedkingdom
Looks really promising... what are you planning for instruments? The MSFS gauges SDK is a 'work in progress' which is particularly difficult for gliders.
 
Messages
70
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us-florida
Looks really promising... what are you planning for instruments? The MSFS gauges SDK is a 'work in progress' which is particularly difficult for gliders.
Going to delve into html deeper once I struggle through the sdk portion. Alex mentioned he will help me if I can't figure it out. I've done a some of this before so hopefully the glider gives me no unachievable hurdles.
 
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244
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unitedkingdom
I think the entire gauges section of the SDK says "TO DO".

The github repo for the freeware / open source MSFS mod to the FSX DG808S is here:


Because it's a 'legacy' conversion *all* the instruments are in html/css/js and IMHO those with needles are ok but are not great compared to 'proper' 3D instrument & yawstring models. In a native MSFS model it will be an easy change to animate 3D needles instead of rotating html elements. Also (for the legacy conversion) our hack is to paint a VLivery inside the cockpit instead of using VCockpit but all the html/css/jss code in the instruments is the same as it would be in a 'native' aircraft.

Actually MSFS itself isn't quite ready for gliders - the 'gusts' in the wind are a big problem (but the pilot can disable those) and the simvars you need for the gliding instruments aren't quite ready for prime time (the DG808S examples have workarounds for all of that, e.g. calculating yawstring deflection from more basic air/ground velocity vars).

One tip is *assume* you'll end up with decent html/js code and when your gauges are working connect your animations to local program variables instead of direct to SDK simvars. If you then program one-liners (simvar)->(local var) then you're back where you started, but the scripting allows you more control if you need it. This is more true of a fancier glider e.g. longer wing flex or flaperons but it's an easy/useful design technique.

The good news is the 'ridge lift' from wind over the hills in MSFS already works quite well for gliding.

Thanks for working on a freeware MSFS glider - I'm looking forward to flying it.
 
Messages
70
Country
us-florida
13-JAN-2021: @EggMan28 was able to crack the code and get the KHR_Texture error figured out today, I applied that to the new model file, re-did UV mapping scales and we got the model working in game! I was able to fully flesh out the contact points and take her on a bounce test (I wouldn't call this first flight just yet haha) Lots of progress today, things should get easier now since we can start editing her in developer mode
. I still have to work on animations, 3D Materials/Reflections and a couple other small things like canopy visibility and a human pilot for exterior view! Thanks for you support as always!
ezgif-7-4a4ec0fe4df6.gif

Capture.PNG

Capture2.PNG
 
Messages
70
Country
us-florida
I think the entire gauges section of the SDK says "TO DO".

The github repo for the freeware / open source MSFS mod to the FSX DG808S is here:


Because it's a 'legacy' conversion *all* the instruments are in html/css/js and IMHO those with needles are ok but are not great compared to 'proper' 3D instrument & yawstring models. In a native MSFS model it will be an easy change to animate 3D needles instead of rotating html elements. Also (for the legacy conversion) our hack is to paint a VLivery inside the cockpit instead of using VCockpit but all the html/css/jss code in the instruments is the same as it would be in a 'native' aircraft.

Actually MSFS itself isn't quite ready for gliders - the 'gusts' in the wind are a big problem (but the pilot can disable those) and the simvars you need for the gliding instruments aren't quite ready for prime time (the DG808S examples have workarounds for all of that, e.g. calculating yawstring deflection from more basic air/ground velocity vars).

One tip is *assume* you'll end up with decent html/js code and when your gauges are working connect your animations to local program variables instead of direct to SDK simvars. If you then program one-liners (simvar)->(local var) then you're back where you started, but the scripting allows you more control if you need it. This is more true of a fancier glider e.g. longer wing flex or flaperons but it's an easy/useful design technique.

The good news is the 'ridge lift' from wind over the hills in MSFS already works quite well for gliding.

Thanks for working on a freeware MSFS glider - I'm looking forward to flying it.
Awesome info! Good stuff, hopefully we can delve into this stuff soon!
 
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244
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unitedkingdom
Err... are those air brakes longer than they should be? (I'd definitely count that bounce test as first flight...)
 
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5
Country
france
Congratulations!!!
Brandon Yaeger
!!! I also work with development but not software and great to see using an agile approach to your project with launching prototypes, testing early on and improving! If you need some Beta tester I would love to give it a try.
😉
 
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244
Country
unitedkingdom
Here are a couple of real cockpit images in case they help with layout - the dials are never going to be regularly-spaced 57mm, also whatever you do with the variometers and the ASI is going to dominate the panel. Even though these images represent two generations of panels you'll see they both have two variometer dials. (The bottom image is a motor glider, so a 90mm dial on the panel is taken up with that).

anwendungen_segelfliegen_cockpit.jpg


f864c2c238630932fc21ff289c4cbd0e.jpg
 
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29
Country
switzerland
Very interesting project!

Can't wait to fly a Discus around Thun 😍

I hope it also gets working COM and Transponder which would be awesome for some gliding on Vatsim 🙂
 
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