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quadrotor

quadrotor
This summer's Edgerton Center Engineering Design class produced four awesome projects in four weeks. One of the projects was a functional RC quadrotor built with commonly-available RC equipment and an Arduino microcontroller board. Here is the instructions on how to make the quadrotor. The video of the four projects can be found here.


Parts List:

- 1/32” aluminum sheet
- 2 of 8 x 3.8 slow flyer propeller
- 2 of 8 x 3.8 slow flyer pusher propeller
- 4 of Turnigy C2028 Micro brushless outrunner 1400kV motor
- 4 of Turnigy Plush 18 amp speed controller
- Turnigy nano-tech 1800mah 4S 35-70C Lipo Pack
- 1/2” 4-40 plastic machine screws
- 4-40 plastic nuts
- 1/2” 4-40 aluminum machine screws
- 5/8” 4-40 aluminum machine screws
- 3/8” 4-40 aluminum machine screws
- 2” threaded 4-40 plastic spacers
- Accelerometer + Gyros chip: Sparkfun 6DOF razor IMU
- Microcontroller: arduino mini
- Hobbyking 2.4 GHz transmitter and receiver + Controller
- 1.5” hex threaded 4-40 aluminum spacers
- 2 of Carbon Fiber square tube .25” x .25” (.180 ID) x 48”
- Strings
- Zip-ties
- Super glue
- Velcro
- Protoboard
- Female header pins
- 3.3 volt regulator
- Jumper Wires


Where to get parts:

Propellers- http://www.apcprop.com/pindex.asp?Page=2  

http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_index.asp

Carbon Fiber square tube - http://www.dragonplate.com/

http://www.mcmaster.com/

http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/categories.php
 
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Step 1

Cut 2 of 14”, 4 of 6.125”, 4 of 8” carbon fiber square tubes

Drill 7/64” holes 3/8” away from each ends of the cut carbon fiber tubes.

Drill 7/64” holes 1 and 5/8” from both ends of 14” long carbon fiber tubes. Drill 7/64” holes 1 and 5/8” from only one end of 6.125” and 8” long carbon fiber tubes.


When drilling through the carbon fiber tubes, drill very slowly with caution. Carbon fiber tubes can split if you don't pay attention. Also use a drill press instead of a hand drill.
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45 comments
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May 4, 2012. 2:39 AMsaif engineer says:
can you please tell me the relation between RPM of moters,thrust produced by moters,blade area,and for how much weight we require how many RPM of moter.
May 3, 2012. 1:57 AMpreddy12 says:
http://pramodhvcet.blogspot.in/

easiest way cheapest and yet powerful way to make quadrotor using arduino pro mini
Apr 18, 2012. 7:38 PMfarmboy177 says:
Try www.blueskyrc.com for awesome prices on props.
Apr 12, 2012. 8:47 AMashakya1 says:
how much money need to make this project?
Mar 3, 2012. 11:04 AMCamWarder says:
i dont understand what the "protoboard" is. is it just the arduino, or is it something else. i dont see a part number or name so i really would appreciate any feedback. also, would it be possible to put the aeroquad firmware on this instead of the firmware supplied in this tutorial.
Feb 24, 2012. 1:01 PMmonty324 says:
i like this because i have a realy nice syma heli but i am afraid to use it because everytime i use it i break the blades but on this it has a thing all the way round all the blades so if it hits somthing then the blades dont snap
Feb 20, 2012. 10:12 AMmohamed_adel says:
Greetings,
the 1400kv motors is out of stock , so i was wondering if i can use a different motor for example Turnigy 1400 Brushless Indoor Motor 4500kv , especially i need to put a heavy payload , and what ESC can be used if i used another motor ??
thank you.
Feb 19, 2012. 11:19 PMPICHIRS says:
Hello sir.i'm Prasant.i'm making a quadrotors.at first i'm try to make it through wireline.so i have buy 28000RPM motor and prop 9*5.connect wires to battery as parrel but there is problem that it doesn't fly & itz geeting downward on one side.can u suggest me whats the problem is there that i will thankfull to u..........
Jan 16, 2012. 1:29 AMkishore1997 says:
Hi,
This was the only guide to building a quadrotor with good code explanation , could you plz explain the whole code to me and how the direction input from the transmitter is decoded and what actions are taken to follow the direction of the joystick.

Thanks Could i pls get a quick response.
Dec 23, 2011. 5:15 PMdchall8 says:
Having done this project and gotten some feedback, what would you do differently next time?  The market for these quads seems to be in aerial surveillance. 

If you wanted to cut costs, where would you start cutting?

If you wanted it to carry a camera, how would you modify it?

If you wanted it to fly a programmed route and return, what would you change? 

If you wanted to fly two (or three), back-to-back, 10-minute flights, how would you change it? 
Oct 29, 2011. 8:12 AMmagdi.saadiah says:
hi all ... please ..
can i make a quadrotor without using an arduino..?? please answer me
Dec 20, 2011. 5:30 PMblinkyblinky says:
Sure...you just need to recreate the code.
Dec 20, 2011. 1:15 PMComputothought says:
Probably never build it but kept the plans for future reference.
Dec 15, 2011. 1:46 PMDwest2828 says:
I have a question about the IMU 6DOF Razor - Ultra-Thin IMU Accel. and gyro chip. The only one they currently sell is the digital version. Would the digital version work?
Nov 24, 2011. 9:05 PMbagoram says:
good work guys. really nice..
Nov 19, 2011. 6:50 PMa sandwhich says:
Is it necessary to use an esc programming card? Where you able to use the esc's right out of the box without having to modify/reprogram them?
Nov 9, 2011. 9:58 AMankitgarg2005 says:
can we use 89v51rd2 microcontroller
Dec 15, 2010. 11:09 AMPhoenix17 says:
I'm buying an Arduino Uno. I'm not sure if you know, but would you connect the same pins on the uno? Or do they have numbers and voltage correlations?
Jun 30, 2011. 9:28 PMArmethis says:
The Arduino Uno has a lightly different layout then the Pro Mini being used here. One plus is that you can skip that 3.3v regulator because there is one on the board already. You'll notice that there is a pin labelled "3.3v" to which you can connect the corresponding 3.3v port on your sensor board.

So the pins for the sensor board the line up as such;
3.3v = 3.3v
GND = GND
Gx4 Y = Analogue5
Gx4 X = Analogue4
Gx4 Z = Analogue3
A Z = Analogue2
A Y = Analogue1
A X = Analogue0

The rest of the pins should correspond plainly to the ones on your UNO
Digital pins 6,7,8,9 to the control pin on your ESCs. Human controls are on pins 2,3,4,5 to your receiver. Personally I am using an Xbee module instead so I will not be using that last set.
Jun 28, 2011. 3:26 AMyukimunaz says:
can i know total weight of your quadrotor?
cause my quadrotor have weight 1.5kg and my motor used 830KV
and you know what happen when i'm using full power?
nothing ; hahahhahahahha....................
so my quadrotor cannot lift up yet T_T
Jun 24, 2011. 12:54 PMpbawesome says:
hey, I've heard about Edgerton Center. I've never come down because I couldn't find much info on the site.

A lady, I can't remember her name brought it up at the st louis airport after the FIRST championship. I'm interested in coming to check out what you guys do, and maybe throw around some ideas. I also have a quad rotor, using just about the same things, I'm running an arduino mega because I plan to integrate heading and barometric pressure.

I'd like to get some help with software and trying out some autonomous flight.

Thank You

I'm eagerly waiting to hear from you :)
Jun 16, 2011. 3:24 AMevileyz says:
Hey,
Hi to all of you .. Guys em stuck in a big problem .. can some one help me out ..
my problem is how to integrate the quad rotor with micro controller ..
details : Actually i build the quad rotor .. The RC which em using is for Aeroplane not for Quad rotor ... so it is not support with quad rotor .. because all rotors are not working simultaneously .. someone told me that you should use micro controlling .. i have no idea about that because em a software engineering student .. can some one give me the code of micro controlling for quad rotor ? please i shall be very thankful .. please guys .. Thanks
Feb 7, 2011. 2:37 AMthod999 says:
Great project i'm inspired and want to have a go!
I've done a quick costing of the project using the links referenced, it's coming out at $320 plus postage (say another 20%) so $380

I'm looking to make this project but don't know where to find the plastic spacers nuts and screws you've specified. I'm in australia and don't have home depot :) any ideas where i can find this stuff on the internet?
Dec 13, 2010. 9:42 AMPhoenix17 says:
Couple things- suggestions and then my question


First: Watched your video of it! I noticed that as soon as it takes off it starts to spin. Are all your rotors turning the same direction? If so, maybe try some combination of opposite directions. like two on a side opposite, or opposing rotors spin opposite (and adjust the props accordingly of course)

Second: I also noticed that it accelerated up and down really quickly. You could code your control to "soften" the acceleration by telling it to hold minimum motor voltage at no user input to be just slightly below what it takes to "hold
" position. Know what I mean? So at negative user input it will give it whatever corresponding voltage is, but zero joystick input means it gives hover or slightly below hover voltage.


My question- do you have a total cost? I want to build this, and I'm getting a board already. But when I looked at that accelerometer/gyro board I nearly crapped myself. It's like $90! Do you think I could build an analog IC with accelerometers and gyros? I was hoping to build this under like $150 :p
Oct 31, 2010. 10:21 PMultralightcomposites says:
you could use a composite material to your RC quadrotor to easy and very light to carry. You can view some carbon fiber materials for your project here, follow this link: http://www.ultralightcomposites.com thanks!
Oct 26, 2010. 3:21 AMmaddyeffect says:
can you please upload the circuit schematic diagram of guadrotor
Oct 8, 2010. 11:22 PMsusipriyan says:
i have designed half only one motor is running as per your concept what should i have to do for controlling all four
Oct 15, 2010. 2:26 PMfeet1515 says:
Presumably you should connect the speed controller control wires to the correct pins on the Ardino board via the wiring diagram in the instructable.
Oct 8, 2010. 1:16 AMrohit7gupta says:
which software is this??
Oct 15, 2010. 2:21 PMfeet1515 says:
The software can be downloaded off the arduino website.

http://arduino.cc/en/Main/Software
Oct 15, 2010. 1:04 PMhci1111 says:
I've found a very simple solution for building quadrocoptes with a control board ready to use: www.TT-Copter.de
Sep 12, 2010. 8:20 AMagis68 says:
It looks grate and in video looks fine (maybe the opperator has some riding problems) What u use for the landing? Wheels or anything like pumpers? Because in video I cant see. What if you tease the propeller diameter?
Sep 14, 2010. 1:49 PMfeet1515 says:
As can be seen in the photo above, the quadrotor lands on the bottom aluminum plate (the one below the battery).
Sep 12, 2010. 12:20 PMkea says:
Too complex. The RC Side-winder rocket uses 1 of everything & can hover.
A delta wing of similar design can also hover.
No gyros or fancy expensive stuff needed. I intend to build 1 in a month or so when finished a couple of other projects.
Try Googling RC VTOL aircraft.
Check this out.
www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&source=hp&q=rc+sidewinder+rocket&btnG=Google+Search
Cheers Kiwi.
Sep 14, 2010. 9:47 AMSwaggeringPagan says:
Apples to oranges. While your 'missile' is a fun toy, there's no way it could yield the stability of a quad for doing things like aerial photography, payload delivery, etc. Toy airplanes are fun, but his has technical value.
Sep 12, 2010. 9:47 PMYolksterXD says:
I've found other detailed build instructions as well as general info & forums at these websites:

Stuff about DIY Drones: http://diydrones.com/
Stuff about QuadRotors: http://aeroquad.com/content.php

Detailed build instructions: http://aeroquad.com/content.php?115
Sep 6, 2010. 7:21 PMCulturespy says:
A video would really go a long way for this one. I bet it looks great in action.
Sep 10, 2010. 8:25 AMrvet says:
Hmm it doesn't look like your video's working :(
Sep 12, 2010. 6:19 AMFoiL says:
http://techtv.mit.edu/collections/scolton/videos/8047-edgerton-center-engineering-design-class-2010-project-highlights

Here's the direct link.
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