Roboport Clog Issue (a.k.a. Lazy Logistic Bots)

[TheTacticalGamer]

My basic situation is that I've built my production block in layers, assembly machines producing components at one end, which are then distributed up the map to any requester chests that need those materials via logistic bots. Everything I need that can be made inside an assembly machine is produced along this stretch of land and is nicely organized. Just imagine a really long rectangle divided into sections and you'll understand what it looks like.

My problem is that the logistic bots don't return to the 'component block' after getting recharged at a roboport; they'll go inside until they fill up the roboports and do nothing like lazy metal bums. If I take them to the roboports near the component block, they immediately get to work, as more components always need to go out, but I have to do this manually every time. If I don't, they'll just sit inside a roboport, despite the network having work for them, because it's "out of range" of the roboport they're sleeping inside.

Currently, I'm using provider/requester chests beside these roboports to recycle these lazy bots back to the component block and get them back to work. However, I want to know if anyone else has had this problem and their solutions for getting around this clogging issue.

Thanks in advance for any and all helpful comments and advice.

[Antarata]

Maybe have a fully connected roboport system?

I dunno other than that

[MongognoM]

Check if your roboports are connected.
Do you have passive provider chest at your "component block " ?
And have you set your requester chest to request something ?

[Warlord]

Robots will do the job that is under ANY of the roboports that are connected to the same network. Assuming the start of the component block and the end are connected, there is no reason at all your robots will sit inside the latter roboports and refuse to do any of the jobs near the former.

Without seeing the setup, we can't be sure of a number of possible issues. But I'd wager it's simply that you don't realize jobs are fulfilled, but by robots far away. In your case, yes, it can be an issue where eventually your robots tend to accumulate at the "drop off" end of a production line, so it takes them some time to head back up the line to the pickup.

Your solution of pulling out the robots and transporting them back actually works pretty well. It should keep robots as close as possible to the pickup spot to reduce the delivery latency.

[TheTacticalGamer]

-Antarata & MongognoM

I have made sure my roboport network is connected; it was one of the first things I checked. Any roboport network not involved in the assembly strip is outside even construction bot range so they don't interfere; another thing I checked at the start.

My component block uses active providers chests. I don't use any passive provider chests in my production area; there's no point to have pp-chests there in my eyes. Iron/Copper/Steel is fed directly to sets of ap-chests from the forge located at the bottom of the component block. If any assembly needs these base ingredients, they are pulled from here to requester chests, which should draw my logistic bots down there, but doesn't.

I made sure every requester chest is requesting something; it's among the first things I checked when experiencing this problem. Component and material amounts are also set high so there are at least a couple stacks of each ingredient for the item the assembly machine is producing. My logic for this was "If there's continuous demand, my bots will stay busy."

-Warlord

I'd agree with your wager. The work is being done. It's just being done more slowly because the requests are being fulfilled by local logistic bots instead of calling on those who are farther away for help so it gets done faster. Thus causing the roboport clog.

The area where the log-bots tend to clog up into the roboports is in the "low traffic" layer of the production strip; things like hi-tech science and modules are made here because they take a long time. Because Iron/Copper/Steel are part of the component block too, it's "high traffic", and thus where I need my log-bots to be so things are done quickly. These are basically opposite at ends of the production strip, and why I created my "bot recycling system" because I was tired of having to take them from one end to the other manually.

[Warlord]

Interesting. Well, as long as you set requester chest limits high enough, even the latency when a far away bot comes to deliver something won't slow production down.

[astrosha]

Bots are quite useful, but something tells me that you may have better luck breaking your production areas up a bit. If your bots are in their own separate networks, they won't be travelling quite so far.

Alternatively, without seeing your setup, your use of the word "strip" suggests its a long narrow production area. Perhaps taking part of it and, through the magic of Blueprints, simply moving it so instead of a long narrow strip you have something more approximating a square?

Or just research enough Logistics Robot Speed that they fly fast enough that there's no appreciable delay anyway.

[AlexMBrennan]

Maybe have a fully connected roboport system?

Could you explain to me how you think it is possible for the bots to move items from the source to the destination as stated if the two networks are not connected?

[Name Lips]

Bots will retire to the closest roboport when they are done with their work.

Also, when a new job comes up, the nearest available robot will be assigned to do the job.

The robots at the top of your factory have no incentive to travel back home to the lower roboports, so long as all the jobs there are finding a nearby robot to fill them.

You have a bottom-side of your factory whose only job is to provide resources, and a top-side whose only job is to accept resouces. Natrually you are going to end up with a ton of robots accumulating at the top.

Eventually they'll all be up there, and some will start making the trip down to the bottom to fill the job requests. (Personally I think that's good enough.)

But there IS a way around this! A way to get robots to return to the bottom! 1) set up a provider chest next to a top-side roboport with an inserter. The inserter will take robots out of the roboport and put them into the provider chest. 2) set up a requester chest at the bottom-side with an inserter feeding robots into the roboport. Now, not only will robots make the trip down to the bottom, but they'll carry a friend with them! And both of them will end up in bottom-side roboports.

[Killcreek2]

Originally posted by Name Lips:

A way to get robots to return to the bottom! 1) set up a provider chest next to a top-side roboport with an inserter. The inserter will take robots out of the roboport and put them into the provider chest. 2) set up a requester chest at the bottom-side with an inserter feeding robots into the roboport. Now, not only will robots make the trip down to the bottom, but they'll carry a friend with them! And both of them will end up in bottom-side roboports.

Have considered something like this before. Usually I air-gap logi nets to keep bots localised, but my latest fac might have a use-case for this method in the plastics area.

Have you tested it out much yourself? If so: does cargo capacity make a notable difference or not matter at all? Did you use a regulator circuit connected to both ends, or simple "push(pull) if more(less) than X in port" chest setup?

[Name Lips]

Originally posted by Killcreek2:

Originally posted by Name Lips:

A way to get robots to return to the bottom! 1) set up a provider chest next to a top-side roboport with an inserter. The inserter will take robots out of the roboport and put them into the provider chest. 2) set up a requester chest at the bottom-side with an inserter feeding robots into the roboport. Now, not only will robots make the trip down to the bottom, but they'll carry a friend with them! And both of them will end up in bottom-side roboports.

Have considered something like this before. Usually I air-gap logi nets to keep bots localised, but my latest fac might have a use-case for this method in the plastics area.

Have you tested it out much yourself? If so: does cargo capacity make a notable difference or not matter at all? Did you use a regulator circuit connected to both ends, or simple "push(pull) if more(less) than X in port" chest setup?

I mostly use the "remove from roboports with an inserter" to upgrade robots when I'm using bob's mods. Mark 4 robots with speed upgrades are insane!

I have put together several robot-only bases, and the main thing I can say is just overdo it. Make tons of robots. Try to have stuff for them to do everywhere, so you don't have so many one-way trips.