AI Ships

**frontman** · 01-18-2004, 12:26 PM

Hi all,
I was wondering if anyone has ever made a ship go from one port to another and back again? If you can make flight plans for aircraft I would think you could for ships as well. I never understood why there was no shipping traffic in this sim. It's not like they have a
road to follow. The ships in the sim never really seem to have a destination. I just think it would make this sim that much better with ships heading out to sea in real time. Can this be done? Now, if someone could make the Queen Elizabeth 2 and have her leaving and arriving on a schedule, that would be impressive. Maybe wishful thinking on my part.

Cheers,
Jim

**JohnKrist** · 01-18-2004, 02:36 PM

I saw in a post that someone had succesfully got a speedboat to work as AI.
I myself have tried to get ferries between Helsing�r in Denmark and Helsingborg in Sweden, still no success though. Main problem is that there aren't any working ferries around. I found a Hong Kong Ferry from FS98 that I altered so I could drive it in FS. But it wont work as AI and I don't know why, yet. I have also created 2 "airports" with water rwy and water parking, tower and everything thinkable (except for maybe one thing then, since it doesn't work)

Here is a pic of the ferry at a designated parking:
http://home.tiscali.se/johnnykr/FerryInHelsinborg.JPG

Would love if someone made a better ferry :)
And another thing, the bridge in the background is not there in real life, there is a bridge 50 km south, but that's a suspension bridge, hehe.

**dextersbones** · 01-18-2004, 06:48 PM

I have sailboats and speedboats moving on Okanagan Lake. I also have a coast guard cutter and a ferry moving back and forth from Vancouver to Vancouver Island. I used Dynamic Object Designer, Dyngen, and Dynkit to make all this happen. I also have some motor vehicles moving around my home airport using the same process. Lots of fun. I had a hot air balloon once but it kept disappearing in mid flight at aproximately 11 miles from the airport. That was in FS2002. I haven't tried the balloon in FS9. I also have
DOD-created helicopters in addition to my AI choppers flying in my airspace.

**madtun** · 01-18-2004, 09:03 PM

You must have alot of RAM and computer power. My system has to keep up with the 70%-90% AI Aircraft traffic I demand. Just image having it to keep up with ships that I might not even get close enough to see from FL35. FS9 has added alot of that type of eyecandy including the ship off of Miami Int and the power lines everywhere. When the Home SuperComputer becomes availible I expect AI helicopters,Ships, Cars, Trains and people everywhere I go. Until then I think FS Sims need to stick to flying.

**dextersbones** · 01-18-2004, 10:16 PM

The nice thing about those programs that I mentioned above is that the scenery they generate is frame rate friendly.

My system is 576 megs RAM
AMD 2400+ ATHLON XP
NVIDIA GeForce FX5200
WINDOWS XP ( thanks to all of you that convinced me to change from WINME)

I run AI at 100% and average about 15 to 20 FPS except at busy airports like YVR where I get 8 to 10 FPS.

Of course not all my sliders are maxed. Some are at minimums but I don't notice the loss of quality.

If you want to make AI ships, find one that you can pilot, then make a dock with gates at the departure and arrival ports with AFCAD (like a seaplane base, but call it a dock) then use AITM to make the sail plan (flightplan) it should work.

**JohnKrist** · 01-19-2004, 11:22 AM

Quote:
"If you want to make AI ships, find one that you can pilot, then make a dock with gates at the departure and arrival ports with AFCAD (like a seaplane base, but call it a dock) then use AITM to make the sail plan (flightplan) it should work."

Well, I have done just that, but it still doesn't work. Think it has to do with the ferry most of all since it isn't a 2002-2004 "aircraft". Does anyone know where to find a nice "flyable" ship? The one pictured above was the only one on flightsim.com

**dextersbones** · 01-19-2004, 02:31 PM

I am using a coast guard cutter made for fs2002. But it works as AI in FS9. I have it cruising south from Tsawwassen at 55 knots and it looks pretty good. I have been trying to upload a screen shot to show you what it looks like, but for some reason, it won't upload.

All my other dynamic scenery was developed using DOD and the other programs mentioned in my first post.

**jmagyar** · 01-20-2004, 01:33 AM

Holger...Have you figured a way to slow them down on taxi?? That is my main delima now. I have a few cruise ships coming in and out of the Port of MIA. Was easy, just made the runway outside the actual canal entrance and then made taxiways to the parking area. Make another 'seaport in the middle of the ocean where it is a straight shot, so they will not cross land. My two main problems right now are that they "taxi" too fast and that I can not get them to come past there pier and turn around at the navigation lake behind it. Well I can get them to turn, but they do it both ways. And that is not right. I would like Lee to somehow figure out how to make one way taxiways. That would solve so many issues, plus even when doing regular airports, alot of the bigger ones have taxiways they use in one direction. Don't know if the oneway taxiways would even be a possibilty, but one that has been on my wish list since the begining of AFCAD.

Other issues....and this is with TTOOLS...wish you could include FIXES into a flight plan. I can not make a ship go say around the florida keys. What I have done is set up a port airport in MIA, and then another one two hundred miles out to the east. And I have the ships come and go from there. I am going to do that with other ports as well. So, I might not be able to have the traffic actually going to real places. But I am getting traffic in and out of ports fairly well. Again, main two issues is taxispeed and one way taxiways....Ideas??? :)

BTW...please upload your ships, or tell us where you are getting them from. Or...explain how you are creating them. I am not an aircraft builder, but if you are...here is a link to some nice cruiseships I would love to have made!!! Show me the way!

http://members.cox.net/cruise7/

Airpics at http://members.tripod.com/airlinepics/index.htm

and if anyone cares....vaction pics at http://members.cox.net/joalger/

I work for a cruise line...So I am probably obsessed with having decent cruise ships. Just something to see in the water, as you are jumping around the Caribbean. :)

**dextersbones** · 01-20-2004, 01:45 AM

I now have two cutters plying the ocean west of Vancouver. But there are bugs that keep cropping up. As soon as I get them sorted out I will upload them, unless you guys want to work on the buggy versions to see if you can make them better.

I solved the taxi speed problem by adjusting the max RPM and horsepower in the FLIGHT DYNAMICS section (the piston engine TAB)

Lots of trial and error...

BTW. this system works with float planes as well.