When evaluating designs created in the PR&D phase of testing, the team reconsidered its priorities
- Function
- Budget
- Weight
- Energy efficiency
At the beginning of AR&D testing, the team reasoned that the weight of the team design concept created in the final PR&D lab would likely be greater if the vehicle were to be made of sheet aluminum than it would if it were to be created out of the plastic parts provided in the AEV kit. Additionally, the extra cost associated with the creation of custom parts would harm the project’s budget. Since the first priority is functionality, another design focus was on keeping the weight stable. Finally, it was noticed that the hanger arm of the team design concept seemed to be about 15 degrees from vertical when hung on the track.
For all these reasons, the previous team design concept was replaced with a new, much more compact design concept. This design is shown in the figure below. It had an off-center propeller and wing to accommodate for the off-center arm.
This design was still unbalanced, however, so it was modified, and became the design shown below.
As can be seen, the new design was made to be very thin and tall, which helps the AEV to hang its center of mass directly below its hanger arm. This design and a single motor variation that had the top motor removed (as seen in the figure below) were both tested throughout AR&D.
