25cm thick solar panel

Kennet0508 shared this feedback ago

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I just saw the screenshot of the latest hotfix and realised: i really wanna see a skinny solar panel so i can have regular panels underneath.

So basically a 25cm panel thick solar panel with cells on one side. That would be a really simple but cool addition that gives massive flexibility. Simple is ofcourse given that the game supports solar panels only getting sun on one side.

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Replies (4)

Wilhelm ●

I would also like a 25cm cube block with solar panels on one (long face for angle blocks) side so I could paint a solar grid with detail cubes in whatever shape or size I wanted.

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Strong Hoov ●

Same !

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Tiberio ●

For an unknown reason, the devs seem to refuse to use the 25cm scale for any functionnal block.

Camera, solar panel, logic blocks, mechanical blocks, wheels and so many more could benefit from a smallest scale variant, and I wonder why it stil isn't the case.

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Gipsy Nuke ●

They don't refuse to use 25cm, the sensor is a 25*25*12.5 cm, and there's also the control panel. But I agree that they could use this scale on more blocks.

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Alex ●

Yes, I completely agree. I don’t understand why there are solar panels on both sides of the solar panel block. The only scenario where this would really be useful, I think, would be placing a panel directly between two stars in a binary star system, where the panel could receive sunlight from both sides. Other than that, it seems unnecessary for most designs. That’s why I think solar panel blocks should only have solar panels on one side. This would allow the blocks to have a much thinner design. Another suggestion I have is related to the current rectangular shape of the solar panel blocks. Smaller square-shaped solar panel block alternatives, half the size of the current ones, could also be added to the game.

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Wilhelm ●

The two sided solar panels make sense from the perspective of a space base where the solar panel is on a pole and as the sun goes around it catches both sides. However, a half thickness version with one side could simply put another panel on the other side and it would be identical to the current one.

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Alex ●

Wilhelm, the scenario you described makes sense in theory, but from an engineering perspective, the efficiency of a fixed double-sided solar panel is not as high as it might seem. When a solar panel is mounted on a stationary pole, the Sun moves throughout the day, so sunlight only strikes the panel at a perpendicular or near-perpendicular angle for a relatively short period of time. During most of the day, the sunlight reaches the panel at shallow angles. The power generated by a solar panel depends on the angle of incidence of the incoming light. As this angle decreases, the amount of energy the panel can produce drops rapidly, and the electricity generated at low angles is, in practice, significantly lower than its maximum output.

Instead, when a single-sided solar panel is used together with a solar tracking system, the panel continuously faces the Sun and operates at close to its maximum efficiency throughout the day. If we assume that a single-sided solar panel block costs half as much as the current double-sided block, then a tracked single-sided panel becomes a much more practical solution in terms of both resource efficiency and energy production.

Also, as you mentioned, adding a single-sided, half-thickness solar panel block to the game would not eliminate the existing design possibilities. Players who prefer a double-sided configuration could simply mount two single-sided panels back-to-back to achieve exactly the same functionality as the current double-sided panel. For that reason, adding a thin, single-sided solar panel block would not limit the current system; on the contrary, it would give players much greater design flexibility.

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