Animated signals

[1993matias]

Hello,

Is it possible to make an animated signal? For example, blinking lights
Or are signals not animate-able?

[Yona-TYT]

There are several things that people would like to be animated, things like the tires of a vehicle, the elice of a helicopter, or the marine coasts, so far we only have the animated pedestrians and that is thanks to the magic of @Dwach.

[prissi]

I think the tires can be animated for citicars and I think there are animated horses. At least Dwachs has worked on that and if pedestrians worked extending this to vehicles would be relatively easy. The biggest problem is the amount of images needed for the animation.

[Yona-TYT]

I think the tires can be animated for citicars and I think there are animated horses. At least Dwachs has worked on that and if pedestrians worked extending this to vehicles would be relatively easy. The biggest problem is the amount of images needed for the animation.

Certainly, there would be many images, however there are not many differences between the rim of one vehicle and that of another, perhaps the same images can be reused on several different vehicles.


On the other hand, the animated wheels would look great on pakset like the 192.comic.

[Flemmbrav]

I'd love to animate my steam engines! so worry not, the coding effort would not go to waste.

[Yona-TYT]

I'd love to animate my steam engines! so worry not, the coding effort would not go to waste.

Those trains will look even cooler then!. 

[1993matias]

So at the moment it is not possible to have a signal blink?

[prissi]

Signals do not have animation, so no. But traffic lights are derived from signals, so in principle the possibility is there. But in practise, a blinking signal will not look good in fast forward, the state would be impossible to see.

[Octavius]

In many countries, the rail signalling system uses blinking lights. Such signalling systems cannot be reproduced in Simutrans without those blinking aspects. For example:
- Netherlands:
    - Blinking yellow: call-on/drive-by-sight
    - Blinking green: proceed at reduced speed, expect proceed
    - Yellow with blinking number: expect caution or reduced speed for a short block
- Norway:
    - Blinking yellow: expect stop
    - Blinking green: expect proceed
    - Blinking green + blinking yellow, in phase: expect proceed at reduced speed
- Italy:
    - Blinking yellow + blinking green, counterphase: expect proceed at 100 km/h
    - Blinking yellow + blinking green, in phase: expect proceed at 60 km/h
    - Blinking yellow: expect caution for a short block
Et cetera. The Norwegian distant signals can be used in Simutrans Standard, the others may find use in the more advanced signalling of Simutrans Extended. If they don't look right in fast forward, so be it. Players don't troubleshoot their signalling system in fast forward.