Progress report lab 03

Backwards looking summary:

During Lab 03, the Creative Design Lab, the team shifted focus from testing and coding to a simpler idea-oriented lab. Each group member brainstormed a unique design for the AEV, changing the shape, parts used, or other variables. The group used brainstorming techniques like looking at alternate ideas, or decreasing focus by considering problems in a related field. Members could utilize parts included in the lab kit or design custom parts to be 3D printed. Each member of Group K submitted their own unique design.

Tim’s design was the aesthetically pleasing, with a shape mimicking a modern fighter jet. It relied on lots of custom 3D printed parts, and used two backwards-facing push propellers.

Andrew’s design had a similar base to the generic AEV, but had the unconventional build of placing one propeller in front and one in the rear. The rear propeller ‘pushed’, while the propeller in front would be in ‘pull’ configuration. This design also attached the battery to the bottom of the vehicle.

Matt had another unconventional design. The base layout had two propellers in the rear in push position (like Tim), and a pair of wings further up. The wings attached to servos that rotated them to serve as a pair of brakes.

Christian’s design inverted the wings, adding them to the back, giving the craft a T shape. The Arduino was mounted lengthwise along the top of the T, and the battery placed parallel to the T center at the front of the AEV. The back wing forms the top shelf of the T, and has the two pull motors point forward with the center.

All 4 designs ended with an estimated weight equal to the base design, due to currently not adding new parts, but shuffling the others around.

In the lab this upcoming week, we will begin the process of not only making a test run of the AEV but collecting data from that particular run. First of, our programmer will make a test run program and we will run the AEV on the track. Once completed we will begin to collect data from the Arduino connections. For example, we will be downloading numbers of time, current, voltage, marks and position, all from the Ardunio. This lab is important because it will allow us to be the most efficient when working with our own design. As well as troubleshoot any problem in the code to make added adjustments along the course of our research for the final product. The data download will be completed using an editor and a command that loads all the data into a MAT-file. From there we can take these numbers convert them into ‘real’ numbers that we can use. To convert the numbers, we can you use a program to take the inputs and go through a calculation within the code and return numbers that are easily comparable.

The second portion of this lab consists of an application we will use throughout the design process. This application will enable us to make quick decision on the production of our AEV. The application can calculate and plot the AEV performance, so that in the end we can make the necessary changes. The lab allows us to become familiar with the application as well as making a test run with real results and data.