Evolution of Design

 

Evolution of Design:

The initial AEV design.

The base of the AEV was redesigned to become more aerodynamic and lightweight. This was meant to solve the problem of the AEV not moving on the track because it was too heavy. Additionally, the initial design which is shown above did not allow enough room for the arduino to be comfortably placed on the base. Finally, everything was made symmetrical to improve the weight balance and hopefully improve the performance of the AEV too.

As seen below, an update was made to the design of the AEV to make the design lighter and more sleek. A slimmer, cross shaped base with wings on the side to hold the motors was used. The placement of the Arduino and battery at different ends of the AEV gave it better weight distribution and the AEV was more level to the track when moving. The new base makes the design look more stylized and smooth as it looks similar to a swept-wing plane

The current AEV design.

 

AEV Findings

Advanced R&D

From the Advanced R&D, it was found that repeated usage of a single battery did not decrease voltage, so the distance traveled and speed were constant. This means that the battery will be a constant variable and will not be a cause of any deviation in the performance of the AEV. Also, from the testing of different sized propellers, it was found that propellers of the smaller size did not create enough thrust to move the AEV forward significantly. This may be due to the fact that the smaller propellers have flat blades while those of the bigger propellers have twisted ones. Additionally, the larger propellers were actually more efficient because they used a lower percentage of power than their smaller counterparts. All of this knowledge will be used to help create a better AEV, both for our group and the entire company.