Steve's Factory Manager/Rotarycraft Sugar and Ethanol Farm

[DriftinFool]

I recently started playing around with Steve's Factory Manager and am really impressed. So simple, but hugely powerful. I started off with just an auto farm for sugar cane. It uses block gates to detect when the sugar grows and harvests it, as well as collect it and place it in a barrel. I wanted the sugar for Rotarycraft ethanol, so figured I would try automating it all. The process goes as such, sugar cane->pulverizer->barrel->fermenter1. I filled a barrel with dirt that is pulled into the fermenter as well. This makes yeast which is sent to fermenter 2. Another barrel supplies the plant matter to make sludge. Finally, sludge is fed into a redstone furnace->magma crucible->fluiducts->filling stations->drums. Both fermenters are fed water. All of this controlled from one interface with a few simple commands going through a single cable block.
Some tips I figured out along the way.
1.It sees all the inventories connected to it and figuring out which one you want can be a pain. Build
complex systems in stages and pay attention to coords so you pick the right machine.
2.When doing multiple triggers, change the interval time on some of them to longer than 1 second. I
found giving them 2-5 second intervals allow multiple operations to run smoother. (I had to offset the
time in a setup I had compressing cobblestone as in came in from the quarry. It would only make the
1 and 2x compressed, but not the 3rd because the stone was coming in so fast. Adjusting the
intervals to slightly longer made it work)
Here is the interface setup I made

The block gates to collect the sugar cane.

Everything nice a neat, side by side with no pipes, yet completely automated, other than adding dirt and plant matter.(That is my next project)

 

[casilleroatr]

I really like the idea of using SFM for this and it gave me another idea that I wonder if you can do if you have time. One of the problems I have with the gasoline engine is that it turns the crystals into a liquid so it can be hard to regulate the amount of ethanol going in and avoiding sinking all your ethanol into one engine when you have about 8 or so. But SFM can read fluid inventories as well so I am wondering if you could build a good regulatory system. I would do it myself but I am busy with some other projects, and it seems like it might fit into this project quite well if you are willing to try it.

 

[DriftinFool]

I really like the idea of using SFM for this and it gave me another idea that I wonder if you can do if you have time. One of the problems I have with the gasoline engine is that it turns the crystals into a liquid so it can be hard to regulate the amount of ethanol going in and avoiding sinking all your ethanol into one engine when you have about 8 or so. But SFM can read fluid inventories as well so I am wondering if you could build a good regulatory system. I would do it myself but I am busy with some other projects, and it seems like it might fit into this project quite well if you are willing to try it.

I know it is possible, but I just started playing with it. I have not figured out how to use variables or move stuff based on inventory space. This systems just backlogs and stops. I have SFM currently making compressed cobble, automating 2 sag mills and alloy smelters in my main work area(so it looks nice and they can be side by side and compact), and the above project. As I run into the issue you are having, which is very soon, I'll see what I can come up with. I still have a lot to learn.

 

[casilleroatr]

I know it is possible, but I just started playing with it. I have not figured out how to use variables or move stuff based on inventory space. This systems just backlogs and stops. I have SFM currently making compressed cobble, automating 2 sag mills and alloy smelters in my main work area(so it looks nice and they can be side by side and compact), and the above project. As I run into the issue you are having, which is very soon, I'll see what I can come up with. I still have a lot to learn.

I'm not really having the issue in a big way yet because other projects have priority right now, but I am anticipating it driving me crazy soon. I was going to use computercraft but I would love to reduce my dependency on that mod. SFM looks to be one of those mods that will help me with that so I really enjoy seeing builds like this on the forums. Good luck coming up with a good system.

 

[Pyure]

This is really cool but I wish I understood better what I'm looking at. What are the blackish blocks in the walls by the sugar cane with the reddish circle(pardon my color blindness). Knowing next to nothing about SFM, I'm trying to figure out how the actual harvesting is done here.

 

[DriftinFool]

The blocks in the wall are called block gates.They act as a block breaker/BUD all in one. They harvest the sugar cane whenever it grows. The block with the red square in the middle over the central barrel is the Factory manager. One of those, a block gate for each sugar cane, and inventory cable connecting it all. The gates don't act as cable so you have to connect to every one.

 

[Pyure]

The blocks in the wall are called block gates.They act as a block breaker/BUD all in one. They harvest the sugar cane whenever it grows. The block with the red square in the middle over the central barrel is the Factory manager. One of those, a block gate for each sugar cane, and inventory cable connecting it all. The gates don't act as cable so you have to connect to every one.

Awesome stuff. Which mod do the block gates come from? Curious if I have them in horizons.

 

[PhilHibbs]

The gates don't act as cable so you have to connect to every one.

You can use Advanced Cable Clusters to make lines of anything that act as cables. The recipe is hugely expensive, but there's a dupe bug that you can use to reduce the cost.

Awesome stuff. Which mod do the block gates come from? Curious if I have them in horizons.

They're from Steve's Factory Manager, which is in Horizons, not sure about the version though.

 

[DriftinFool]

Awesome stuff. Which mod do the block gates come from? Curious if I have them in horizons.

They are part of SFM. Just go into NEI and type @Steve and you will see all the blocks. This build is with Horizons pack.I have only figured out how to use the manager, cable, and block gates. Still unsure what all of the other blocks do and haven't had time or need to search more. Thinking, based off what I figured out so far, that you can do some amazing stuff with it. Just have to figure out how.

 

[PhilHibbs]

Thinking, based off what I figured out so far, that you can do some amazing stuff with it. Just have to figure out how.

Vswe's YouTube videos are pretty much the only documentation at the moment.