Harder, better, faster, stronger

We have been lucky to receive funding recently from the Sabin Family Foundation, along with our long-time supporting group, the WFU Center for Energy, Environment, and Sustainability. With this critical funding we have been able to take our operation to the next level and get the equipment we need to carry out our planned missions in Peru. Here is the short list of what we have gotten recently:

• 2 new 2014 1800mm Skywalker airframes, one of which will be built out into a primary aircraft, the second of which will be maintained as a spare
• 2 new Tarot t810 hexacopter airframes. As with the fixed-wing airframes, one will be built into a primary aircraft and the other will be a spare
• A Honda eu1000i 1000W generator to support sustained field operation
• A GoPro Hero3+ Black edition to improve the quality of our aerial video
• Assorted FPV equipment to increase the range, reliability, and flexibility of our FPV video links
• An additional Sony NEX-5 camera to provide redundancy in case the primary camera fails
• A 16mm prime lens for the NEX to allow it to be used on the DAO
• A Canon SX260HS modified to collect imagery in the blue, green, and NIR bands, allowing us to collect blue-NIR NDVI (very comparable to red-NIR NDVI)

Here are a few pictures of the new gear:

Wide view of the new hexa. It is a beautiful machine.

The basics on the center hub. APM, Dragonlink rx, RFD900, HK F-40A ESCs, trays for dual batteries.

Downward-facing motors which should produce in excess of 2.5kg of thrust at WOT.

And the arms fold up nicely

As do the legs

Same Skywalker 2014 fuselage and tail with new 180 cm wings with downward cranked tips.

GoPro mounted on the nose for FPV. This is a Hero 3 White Ed but it will be replaced with a 3+ Black Ed as soon as the plane is through its testing phase.

Wings have higher chord than the old ones, which should provide more low-speed lift and efficiency.

A nice look at the broad, flat wings with cranked down tips.

I have built the new fixed-wing aircraft, we have begun testing it, and we are very impressed. Other than the crash, detailed in the earlier crash post, it flies extremely well, better than all other previous airframes. It is very responsive and controllable, probably due to the new wing design (the fuselage and tail are the same as our previous version). The ailerons are much larger which, while probably contributing to our crash, also makes the plane's roll performance much, much better than the old airframes (rolling the old DAO with aileron was like trying to turn a bolt with a ratchet set in the wrong direction). We will continue to evaluate the new airframe, including the manufacturer's claim that the new wings are significantly more efficient than the old wings. The claim seems very reasonable, as the wings have a much higher chord, making them perform better at low speed. If this is true it should put us well into the 1 hour flight time range.

I am currently in the process of building the new hexa. It is fully finished save for the propellers (we are still waiting on them to arrive). It is truly a beast, with T-motor MT2826-6 motors (producing peak thrust in excess of 2.5kg with 15" carbon fiber props). I have been very impressed with the frame itself, as well. It is very rigid, well put together, and folds up nicely while locking open securely. The only bad thing it that it was an absolute nightmare to assemble. As soon as we get some props for it I'll get it in the air and see how it flies. I expect to to be a wonderfully-terrifying mix of silky smoothness and raw power. It will need both if it's going to fly the thermal camera we recently submitted a grant for.

So, that gets the blog just about up to speed with what we've been doing lately. The only other update I need to give is on our mapping mission of Pilot Mountain. Look forward to that in an upcoming post.