Alien Tech - Ghost Scanner

Author: Halbgott2001
Factorio: 2.0
Version: 0.1.0
Dependencies: No external mods. Only the Factorio base game is required.

The problem????

Large construction projects can contain hundreds or thousands of ghosts. The logistic network knows which items are stored, but vanilla circuit logic does not provide a simple signal containing the complete list of items still required by all unfinished construction ghosts.

That makes automated supply systems harder than they should be. Players often have to inspect the map manually, rely on separate requester setups, or guess which materials are still missing.

What this mod does

Alien Tech - Ghost Scanner adds a late-midgame scanning structure for automated construction logistics.

The scanner:

• scans all open entity ghosts on its current surface;
• scans tile ghosts such as concrete and landfill;
• counts the item needed to construct each ghost;
• includes requested modules and other ghost item requests;
• outputs every required item as a positive circuit-network signal;
• sends the same output to both red and green circuit wires;
• refreshes the result every two seconds;
• includes an animated rotating mast, synchronized warning light, machine loop and quiet randomized server beeps.

Example: If unfinished ghosts need 120 transport belts, 20 inserters and 4 productivity modules, the scanner outputs those three item signals with those amounts.

How to use it

1. Research Alien Tech - Ghost Scanner after Construction Robotics and Circuit Network.
2. Craft and place the scanner.
3. Connect a red or green circuit wire to its connector.
4. Read its item signals with combinators, lamps, train stations or requester systems.
5. Use the signals to request or transport exactly what your construction robots still need.

Research position

The technology becomes available after Construction Robotics and Circuit Network. It also requires chemical science, so it arrives after construction robots but not extremely late in the game.

Scope

Each scanner counts ghosts:

• on the same surface;
• belonging to the same force;
• without requiring another mod or library.

It does not report items that are already delivered to the ghost or currently carried by robots. Its output represents the construction requirements detected from the remaining ghosts.

Performance

The scan runs once every two seconds rather than every game tick. Multiple scanners belonging to the same force on the same surface share one calculated result during each update.

Installation

Place the ZIP file unchanged into the Factorio mods directory and enable it in the Mods menu.

Windows:

%AppData%\Factorio\mods

Compatibility

• Factorio 2.0
• Standalone
• No optional or required third-party mod dependencies

Credits and asset note

Mod design, implementation, animation integration and publishing: Halbgott2001.

One rendered source asset used during the Blender workflow was obtained through Blendkit. The distributed mod contains rendered 2D sprites, not the extractable source 3D model. See CREDITS.md for the asset note.