From months ago - Ranked trackfiles? Other building blocks of TWS

[sk000tch]

This isn't a TWS complaint thread, but the weekend update referenced TWS as next priority for hornet and there's a couple WIP features that need sorting out before TWS will work correctly.

 

Everything in the hornet is based off L&S, the ability to designate highest threat track as L&S by undesignate button, and to cycle the next highest priority trackfile L&S with each undesignate press, or if DT2 exists, swapping L&S and DT2, is critical to managing L&S/DT2, which in turn is critical to managing scan volume. TDC depress to designate L&S with groups is a nightmare. I am no dev, but I cannot imagine it being that difficult to have undesignate perform the same except according to the threat ranking?

 

There are a lot of hotas controls not in, which is fine as WIP. Some time back I saw a dev comment saying no plans to implement scan centering in RWS and sent a PM to correct it. This was months ago, I didn't follow up or hear anything different after that. This isn't accurate behvarior for even earliest APG-73s. If azimuth is under 140, TDC depress in tactical region of radar attack display that is not over a trackfile or raw return should center scan volume on the cursor's azimuth (or enter SPOT if TDC depress is held).

 

Similarly, if a L&S target exists and azimuth is decreased the scan will autocenter on L&S. The opposite/collary is true as well in that if no L&S exists, and azimuth is less than 140, designating L&S should center the scan on that target, or bias to gimbal limit if centering would go past gimbal limits. This is RWS or TWS.

 

TWS won't have all functionality when it hits beta- no problemi get that. However, managing scan volume and L&S/DT2 designations are key. The lack of scan centering is an annoyance in RWS, makes sanitize and meld procedures not really possible but since we can only launch from STT, trackfile quality isn't really an issue. We don't have aging issues or MEM condition. In TWS though it's is an issue, as frame time directly relates to track quality, and thus pK. And with no deviation from boresight like it is now, assuming we are usually in 4B/40deg, ain't gonna work. We aren't launching salvos of 54s from 30+ nm. The hornet is a bit more finesse in how the pilot maintains track quality while notching by adjusting scan volume for acceptable frame times, usually with L&S and DT2 designations. And assuming we just have manual when first hits beta, you guys will need it for auto/bias as well.

 

Deleted default weapon params stuff - Evidently Set has worked for several months which is fine for WIP. Defaults would alleviate having to set params every flight but not a big deal.

 

Sorry for long post hopefully somebody actually reads though, I am deliberately not mentioning things that can be added later or that don't substantially affect the basic functionality, so it's really not wishlist type stuff.

 

 

btw As was pointed out below some of what I was talking about is already in, very nice. I also noticed max aspect cues and TOF. STT symbology is almost complete except for NCTR confidence, which is also a TWS thing. Also tinkering with the radar I could swear I saw it enter MEM condition on a track? Nice to see the building blocks coming into place. The 18 is getting grown. We can survive with no auto and bump acq. for a bit, but I don't see how TWS works without scan center/bias and proper L&S/DT2 designation

 

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Edited November 17, 2019 by sk000tch

[Harker]

Another thing is the trackfile rank bug on the Radar page. When making the 1st priority trackfile the L&S target, the 2nd priority trackfile changes the number 2 to number 1. The SA page works correctly, creating a mismatch in trackfile ranking between the Radar page and the SA page. (EDIT: It now seems that the SA page and the Radar page are in agreement. If the #1 ranked contact becomes the L&S target, the #2 contact will become #1, #2 will become #3 etc. If the L&S target is released, it'll revert back to #1, assuming it satisfies criteria for #1 and the rest will be updated accordingly. In short, making a ranked contact L&S will remove it from the ranking. I have no info if this is intended behavior).

 

Another issue is that when a friendly contact is placed under cursor in LTWS or designated on the Radar scope, it receives a rank, despite having a friendly HAFU. It's my understanding that friendly contacts shouldn't be ranked. IIRC, the SA page is working correctly in this case.

These are reported bugs and they affect the ranking process, which is directly tied to a lot of the functions that the OP describes.

@OP, the SET function seems to be working correctly for saving azimuth, bars and history settings, AFAIK. You do have to do it every time you fly though.

Edited December 2, 2019 by Harker
Fixed 1st issue

[sk000tch]

Thanks Harker I didn't realize some of that was in, I edited my original post to correct (how do you strikethrough text btw?)

 

The way rankings work is a bit wonky but it seems to have the basics right of range & Vc. I couldn't tell if it was changing ranks for targets locking you, but did notice the sync issue you talk about.

 

also SET is fine with me for now, a little inconvenient but presumably defaults and MU is coming. The key thing to me is not messing with TDC, having undesignate work properly - AND most critically we can't have no scan centering control

[Jak525]

Thanks for this post. I hope ED replies.

 

Side note on centering: in TWS there is a manual option to force manual centering and ignore the L&S.

[sk000tch]

Thanks for this post. I hope ED replies.

 

Side note on centering: in TWS there is a manual option to force manual centering and ignore the L&S.

 

Right, MAN and AUT setting, but in AUT TDC depress on open space in tactical region will enter Bias, which allows the scan volume to be slewed to in either direction to the limit of where the L&S designation would be lost. I'm not saying that very clearly so hopefully it makes sense. It is the most useful IMO of the modes, as the scan volume is azimuth stabilized on L&S, and is the best trade off of SA and minimal loss of MEM or losing L&S.

 

My original post made a lot more sense but I edited it after Harker's comments. That was my fault, as I haven't kept up on development apparently. Hopefully my main points come through. I have given props to ED, whether it was intentional or not, that EA has the benefit of introducing increasingly complexity over time and not overwhelming pilots trying to learn the plane. They've done a pretty good job avoiding letting interim solutions introduce bad habits, with a couple exceptions:

 

Acquisition modes: We've had a few threads going over this though, no need to re-hash. But briefly, before LTWS, users were entering STT via TDC depress. This is a bad habit likely to result in unintended radar behavior.

 

Undesignate button: This I suspect is going to be the new one. IRL usually L&S must be cleared by RSET, undesignate more accurately would be the designate button. Undesignate should either designate highest priority threat or step to next highest (or swap DT1/DT2), but it doesn't undesignate anything (though it does RTS to RWS from STT).

 

One scenario where both of these come up that is quite common: Pilot designates highest priority threat L&S via undesignate. TDC depress is used to designate another contact L&S, making original L&S become DT2. At that point pressing undesignate will swap L&S and DT2, and original L&S target will be L&S again. If L&S and DT2 exist, to actually undesignate, pilot must use RSET to delete DT2, and RSET again to delete L&S.

 

My hunch, given the behavior of the system now, that's going to cause some confusion...