book

Make: Drones

by David McGriffy

October 2016

Intermediate to advanced

222 pages

5h 26m

English

Make: Community

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SuccessSmall, Medium, LargeConventions Used in This BookUsing Code ExamplesSafari® Books OnlineHow to Contact Us
MotorsBatteriesControl Systems
MultiWiiDronecodeAPM/ArduPilotPX4/PixhawkDJI/NazaKK2CC3D/OpenPilotNaze32/Baseflight/CleanflightChoosing a Flight Control System
Aerial PhotographyFPV RacingEducationFlying
Goals and Test MethodsBattery UpgradeProp Upgrade
PartsBuildFlashing New CodeWiringAssemblySetup and TuningRC RatesPIDsModes
A Teensy CPURadiosIMU/AHRSPowerCircuit Board with Motor ControllersFrame/Motors/PropsWeight Budget
Setting Up the IDEMain LoopRC ReceiverBluetoothMotors
Lift and ThrustPitch and RollYawTranslational LiftVortex Ring State
GyrosAccelerometersIMUMagnetometers

ModeAngle ModeRate ModeMix
The AlgorithmP—ProportionalI—IntegralD—DerivativeImplementationTuningTheoryPractice
Design Tools and FilesComponent PlacementPower Input and DistributionMotor ControllerSchematic and LayoutConstruction
Install the Controller and Connect the LEDsConnect the MotorsInstall the RadiosComplete the FrameGround TestFlight Test and Future Work
The S500 KitFollow the Instructions
Mount the ESCsWire the Power Distribution BoardMount the MotorsDetermine Direction
Brushless MotorsESCsBECs
Pixhawk Lite and Shock MountRC RadiosTelemetry RadioSafety SwitchTesting
HistoryTheoryHDOPInstallation
The Earth’s Magnetic FieldDeclination and DeviationMagnetoresistanceUse in Drones
Install the PropsConnect the Battery and Voltage MonitorRadio and Accelerometer CalibrationFlight ModesInitial TuningFinal Checklist and First Flight
SonarLidarOptical Flow SensorsVisual Odometry
Causes of VibrationEffects of VibrationDamping and IsolationProp Balancing
FailsafesRedundancy
Computer InterfacesRC Radio StandardsDSM/DSM2/DSMXFrSkyServo/ESC ControlTelemetryGPS
SpecializationRegulationEase of UseSafetyHuman Flight

Content preview from Make: Drones

Chapter 25. The Future

As futuristic as a current drone performing a completely autonomous flight might seem, most people agree that we are only at the beginning. There may yet be new breakthroughs that change the game, breakthroughs like in the motors, batteries, and control systems I described in Chapter 1 as making drones possible. Battery technology seems like one place where radical changes might happen. But we will stay on safer ground, or perhaps in safer skies, here by only asking where current trends might take us.

Specialization

Already an aerial photography drone looks different from a racing drone. If and when we have delivery drones, those will surely be a different breed again. Just as today we have several well established categories ...