Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
39 Robotic T-shirt Launcher Mark III
 Jiakai Zheng
Mingchen Li
Shenao Wang
Xiao Luo
 design_document1.pdf
final_paper1.pdf
final_paper2.pdf
proposal1.pdf
proposal2.pdf
 Timothy Lee
## Team Members
Li Mingchen (ml110),
Zheng Jiakai (jiakaiz4),
Wang Shenao (shenaow2),
Luo Xiao (xiaoluo5)

## Project Title
**Robotic T-shirt Launcher Mark III**

## Problem
1.The previous version of MARK II is excessively bulky for convenient portability and usage. It is imperative to reduce the dimensions and weight of the T-shirt launcher.

2.The shirt launcher is equipped with insufficient spare ammunition. It is necessary to ensure a minimum of three shots or enhance its firing rate.

3.To address system uncertainties, a comprehensive risk assessment should be conducted during the design phase to identify potential sources of uncertainty and their potential impacts. Mitigation strategies, such as redundant safety mechanisms, backup systems, and robust testing procedures, can be incorporated to minimize the effects of uncertainty on the system's performance and reliability.


## Solution Overview
While preserving the achievements of ROBOTIC's T-SHIRT LAUNCHER MARK II, our team will address critical flaws. For example, the MARK II was too large and heavy for its function, and the MARK II fired too slowly. In addition, in terms of automation of the system, we will also try to achieve the unfinished goals of the MARK II and ensure safety by optimizing the launch trajectory.


## Solution Components
Launcher system: The launcher system consists of an air chamber made up of gas cylinders, gas cylinders used to inflate the air chamber, an inlet valve, an exhaust valve, an exhaust trigger, and a barometer (for detecting the air pressure in the air chamber). These components are used to rapidly inflate and launch the T shirt through differential air pressure.

Two Degree of Freedom Targeting Gimbal: This targeting gimbal consists of a stepper motor, reduction gear sets and aluminum frame structures. It consists of two degrees of freedom of motion, which enables precise control of the pitch and horizontal rotation angles in a stable manner while achieving light weight. The purpose is to adjust the position of the launcher in 3D space after receiving electrical signals from the control system so that the T-Shirt can be successfully launched to the desired place.

Control System: The Control System plays a crucial role in efficiently managing the components of the system. It encompasses a gimbal controller, actuator controllers, electromagnetic valves, and a microcontroller like Arduino. They work together to ensure smooth and accurate operations, control the release of compressed air and keep the pressure in safe operating limits.

Automation System: For the case of use on the gimbal, we want the launcher to be able to fire automatically. Therefore, the system should have a suitable function to automatically adjust the direction and force of the launch according to the situation. In addition, for safety reasons, the system will include a computer vision module to conduct spectator behaviour recognition to avoid potential accidents, such as stampedes.


## Criterion for Success
Functionality of Launcher: The launcher should be able to fire T-shirts. The force of the launch can be changed by controlling the air pressure inside the launcher at the time of launch. The system should be able to simplify the operation by pre-loading the T-shirt in a certain amount. The operator can easily operate the transmitter with the trigger.

Firing Rate: The launcher should have a relatively fast firing rate, which is determined by three key factors: the rate at which the gas chamber inflates to reach the desired pressure, the rate at which the controller controls the closing and opening of the valves, and the rate at which the T-Shirt bullet is loaded. The desired pressure of the chamber will determine the force of the shot, which can be controlled by adjusting the valve closing time, and the chamber will be equipped with a barometer to allow the operator to accurately control the force of the shot and make adjustments.

Smaller Size and Weight: Reducing size and weight was one of the main objectives of this MARK III design, and for this reason we abandoned the rotary round change design of the MARK II and adopted a loaded round change design to reduce redundant size. Secondly, the weight of the gas chamber will be reduced. Two large gas cylinders are used in the MARK II, and in fact, the small volume of a single cylinder provides gas that is perfectly adequate for firing at least 40 rounds of ammunition. Then there is the reduction of overall size and weight, which is achieved by simplifying the frame design of the transport vehicle, and the overall size of the launcher.

Safety: Since the launcher uses a pressure vessel, security considerations are very important to the system. The key parts of the launcher must have components to detect safety metrics, such as barometric values. In addition, for accidents that may occur during use, we should take into account and design safety mechanisms.


## Distribution of Work

Li Mingchen: Automation System

Zheng Jiakai: Launcher system

Wang Shenao: Targeting Gimbal System

Luo Xiao: Control System

VTOL Drone with Only Two Propellers

Yanzhao Gong, Jinke Li, Tianqi Yu, Qianli Zhao

Featured Project

# **TEAM MEMBERS:**

- Yu Tianqi(tianqiy3)

- Li Jinke(jinkeli2)

- Gong Yanzhao(yanzhao8)

- Zhao Qianli(qianliz2)

# **TITLE: VTOL DRONE WITH ONLY TWO PROPELLERS**

# **PROBLEM:**

Nowadays, drones, as an important carrier of new technology and advanced productivity, have become an vital part of the development of new aviation forms. They have been used in many different areas such as military, civilian, commercial and so on. Traditional drones like helicopters have shortcomings in flight speed while fixed-wing aircraft require a runway for takeoff and landing. Vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft not only have helicopters' assessibility and flexbility to take off and land in small spaces, thus they can fly to destinations that are not easily accessible by traditional aircraft, such as remote areas or areas with poor infrastructure; the design of VTOL also allows for faster deployment and response times which is especially important in emergency situations where every second counts. Addtionlly, simpler construcrtion of this drone not only reduces over all cost but requires less energy in longer flight time. Overall, VTOL aircraft offer a level of flexibility and efficiency that traditional aircraft cannot match, making them a valuable tool in a variety of industries, including transportation, military, and emergency services.

# **SOLUTION OVERVIEW:**

We plan to design a small VTOL UAV with a wingspan of about one meter to achieve both vertical takeoff and landing and horizontal flight like a fixed-wing aircraft by means of a horizontal tail and rotatable propellers located at the ends of the mean wings. Such two flight modes and the transition between them require a very precise perception and adjustment of the aircraft's attitude. To do this, we need a high frequency motherboard and some gyroscopic sensors to receive and process the aircraft attitude information and make feedback adjustments. This places high demands on the control section, and also on the mechanical side to ensure structural rigidity, reduce unpredictable jitter in the wings and other components, and thus reduce additional attitude adjustments. What's more, we also need to give more thought to the design of the rotatable propeller section. It is important to reduce the inertia of the rotating part while reducing the complexity of the structure and making it more reliable. For our aircraft, the arrangement of internal electronics and storage space has a huge impact on the center of gravity. While designing the aircraft structure with sufficient strength. We also consider the arrangement of the location of each electronic component, the heat dissipation of electronic components, sufficient storage space, certain water resistance, easier maintenance, etc. We believe that with the cooperation of the team members from different disciplines, we can be responsible for our own sub-projects and take full consideration of the design of other sub-projects to complete the overall design.

# **SOLUTION COMPONENTS:**

**VTOL Control Subsystem:** Different from the traditional sliding mode, vertical takeoff and landing makes our drone basically get rid of the dependence on the runway. This subsystem uses the GY-521 breakout of the MPU6050 6 degree of a freedom IMU. It gives adequate measurement precision to stabilize our drone. We use Teensy 4.0 as our microcontroller and use it for robotics, audio projects and Arduino applications (Teensyduino in our drone). After we assemble all the hardware stuff, we need to write the control code in Arduino/C++ language and uploaded them to the Teensy 4.0 board using Arduino IDE. Our drone will use the rotary lift fan to realize the vertical takeoff and landing of the aircraft by relying on the torque force output of the motor according to the feedback information of the IMU.

**Power Subsystem:** The power system will provide sufficient power for the takeoff and subsequent flight of the drone. It mainly includes two motors, two electric regulators, two propellers and batteries. In our VTOL drone, we plan to use Sunnysky brushless motors V2216, KV800, which could provide a maximum force of 1360N each. And according to the working current, we choose 30A electric regulators and 7.4V batteries.

**Mechanical Subsystem:** This system is the main structure of the drone, housing the rest subsystems of the drone. It is also a vital part, providing lift force when the drone is level. It consists of wings, fuselage and tail. In our drone, we plan to use lightweight PLA to 3D print the wings and other small part and laser cut the glass fiber plate to get the fuselage. Carbon fiber rods are also used in the wing parts to support the 3D printed wings.

**Adjustment of the center of gravity Subsystem:** This subsystem consist of a gyroscope and Teensy 4.0 board, which detects the position of the drone's center of gravity in real time and tranmits the information to the board. The board calculates and transmits the porper angle to the servos, so that the drone can fly soomthly in the air.

**Feedback Control Subsystem:** This subsysteem is aimed to ensure the drone mantains a stable flight path and does not deviate from its target orientation. The system works by comparing the current and target orientation and adjusting each propeller's angle according in order toreduce any error. A PID controller is used to determine the necessary adjustments, and it is then sent to the properllers via a servo motor in order to adjust the blades angles. This process is repeated contiually as the drone is flown.

**Flight mode adjustment Subsysytem:** This subsystem contains two servo, Teensy4.0 board, drone remote control and receiver. When the UAV recives a signal to switch from vertical flight mode to horizontal flight mode, it turns the angles od servos so that a horizontal force is generated to move the UAV in the horizontal direction.

# **CRITERION FOR SUCCESS:**

- Flight performance: The drone should be able to take off and land vertically, as well as hover and maneuver smoothly in the air. It should also have a sufficient range and flight time to perform its intended function.

- Payload capacity: The drone should be able to carry the required payload, such as a camera, sensors, or delivery package, while maintaining stability and flight performance.

- Safety: The drone should be designed with safety in mind, including proper wiring, motor placement, and redundancy systems to prevent crashes or malfunctions.

- Reliability: The drone should be built with high-quality components and tested thoroughly to ensure that it operates reliably and consistently over time.

- Cost-effectiveness: The drone should be designed and built in a cost-effective manner, using affordable components and minimizing unnecessary features or complexity.

# **DISTRIBUTION OF WORK**

## ME STUDENT Yanzhao Gong:

- Print and assembly the mechanical parts of the drone.

- Participate in the design of the rotating mechanism of the two propellerso and the follow-up improvement.

## EE STUDENT Qianli Zhao:

- Adjust and control the drone propellers angle when the drone goes from vertical takeoff to horizontal flight.

- Use the gyroscope to detect and adjust the center of gravity of the drone in time.

## ECE STUDENT Li Jinke:

- Participate in the electrical design of the drone. Complete the welding, assembly and debugging of the electronic control hardware equipment of drone

- Implementation and debugging of drone vertical takeoff and landing control algorithm code

## ME STUDENT Tianqi Yu:

- The design of the fuselage part of the structure, the use of glass fiber plate, carbon fiber rods and PLA 3d printing with the design of lightweight, high-strength fuselage.

- Participated in the design of the rotating mechanism of the two propellers at the end of the wing.