Work Night 4/30/15

Work Night Logan High School

Date: April 30

Focus: Live View kit, Partial calibration, problem with voltage level on Live View, and Calibrating the control systems.

We also spent some time working on our thermal camera which we hope to have completed by the end of the year. We are having some programming issues that we need to resolve, but the components are soldered and ready for assembly.We hope to prove that this device can be used to sense "hot spots" on transmission wires.

People: Max, Joel and Grant

Time: 3 Hours

In this video you will see our first arming test. The arming test is important to determine if you have connectivity between the transmitter and the UAV. We also have to make sure the motors are spinning in the correct direction. No props are placed on the motors during this test for safety.

Pictured below is our thermal camera and laser pointer which we mounted on a swivel bracket. This is controlled by an Arduino.

Work Night 4/22/15

Work Night Logan High School

Date: April 22, 2015

Focus: Assembling the rest of the body and legs, mounted the electronics and guidance systems.

People: Grant, Joel

Time: 2 Hours

Work Night 4/16/15

Work night Logan High School

Date: April 16

Focus: Putting together the main body and arms, wiring the motors up and the main electronics.

This was our first night working on the UAV. You can see below all the part that are ready to be assembled. We do not anticipate any problems with the acutal build.We believe the greater challenge will be in the acutal flying and configuring and programming the system to do what we want it to do.

People: Joel, Ian

Time: 3 hours

This is how it all started. All the parts for our UAV came in.

Installing the motors on the arms.

Connecting and labeling our ESC's (electronic speed control)

Logan Ranger Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Safety Rules

Logan Ranger Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Safety Rules

1. No one gets hurt during the operation of this aerial system! Keep UAV flight path away from bystanders and ensure property is not damaged.
2. It is the pilot’s responsibility to ensure a safe flight.
3. Only handle the UAV when the safety button is blinking red. Propellers and motors are dangerous.
4.   Make sure transmitter is turned on during all missions. Even when using a mobile device to fly the UAV.
5. Make sure transmitter and UAV batteries are fully charged before flight. When battery life drains down to 25%, return to landing area
6. Make sure UAV has satellite lock before take off.
7. Your flight path should always have a safe landing zone in case of signal loss.
8. Fly in an unobstructed area to improve GPS signal strength. Never fly over people or buildings.
9. Never fly out of your line of sight; keep under 400’; and only fly in the daylight.
10. Always practice responsible and safe flying.

Guest Speaker-Dave Foye

Date: Fall 2014
Time: 90 min. (two different class periods)
Student: Entire class

We thought it was important to get as much background information on motors and power demands so we could better determine motor size, prop size, loads, etc.. Dave Foye (retired Systems Engineer from Trane) has come into speak to my classes in past years. He was kind enough to agree to take some time and focus directly on our UAV project. Thanks Dave!

In the picture below, you see a demonstration Dave designed for the class to help illustrate some of the concepts he discussed.

Below Dave is talking to the class on efficiency of UAV's (Fixed wing vs. Multirotor)

Dave talking to a smaller group of students on power requirements.

Logan PLTW Digital Electronics UAV Project

The PLTW-Digital Electronics class at La Crosse Logan High School is partnering with Dairyland Power Cooperative to design an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) which could be used for inspection of power line structures located in difficult terrain. The target date for project completion is the summer of 2015. Funding for the project was made possible by a grant from the La Crosse Public Education Foundation.

 The class will design, program and fabricate the UAV with the following targeted goals:

 1. Inspect power lines for vegetation and overgrowth that could potentially cause a power outage.

 2. Incorporate a First Person View (FPV) system so the flight of the UAV can be monitored by a ground station.

 3. Design the UAV so the GPS coordinates of the power poles can be programmed into the flight plan.

 4. Design/program a thermal camera into the inspection system.

The purpose of the Digital Electronics Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Blog is to document the progress of the UAV Project at La Crosse Logan High School.

Pictured below are Logan Digital Electronics students meeting with Ed West at Dairyland Power for a planning meeting to help define the parameters of the UAV Project in the fall of 2014. Students were then given a tour of Dairyland Power which they enjoyed.