Original Design- The idea behind this AEV was simplicity. While a small amount of testing had been carried out on this design, it helped us understand the parts better and allowed for completion of the pR&D assignments and testing. Without the original design and our observations, we would not have the final AEV design we have today.
Final Design – After some thought and consideration, it was decided that the design could be improved. We wanted to minimize the width of the AEV in order to improve the aerodynamics of the vehicle and make it more efficient. In order to do so, we used a single vertical rectangular base that ran parallel to the support arm. This cuts down tremendously on the surface area being hit by the air as the vehicle operates, making it more efficient. We also wanted to make the vehicle adept to travel both directions the same way. In light of this, we positioned the propellers to be facing opposite directions, so that it would experience the same power going forwards and backwards. Lastly, we wanted to minimize the weight and cost of the vehicle. Our thought process was simple; the lighter the vehicle the easier it’d be to operate efficiently, and we were always trying to stay under the budget for the project. These thoughts are reflected when looking at our final design, in that we used only one plastic plate instead of multiple, we minimized the use of connector brackets and bolts, completely removed the reflectance sensors, and decided against using the servo motor. All of these things take weight and cost off of the AEV. Our final design was 26.91 grams lighter than the original, and $2,153 cheaper, while also proving to be an overall better and more efficient design.
