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Our objective was to design, build, and test an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV or drone) equipped with a system that enables stable landing on uneven terrain, for the purpose of locating a survivor in a rugged environment and providing temporary aid.
Sponsored By: The Boeing Company
Team Members
Stephanie Latona | TJ Miraglia | Matthew Holowsko | Jorge Oliver | Wesley Huff | Eric Lopez | John Hall | | | | |
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Project Summary
Overview
When natural disasters occur, emergency response teams must deploy search and rescue missions to find victims and provide aid. Recently, organizations have started mobilizing UAVs and drones for disaster relief. Although UAV technology has become very advanced, most UAVs cannot land on uneven surfaces. With this challenge in mind, Boeing has asked us to develop a solution that allows a UAV to land on uneven sloped terrain and advance their role in disaster relief.
Objectives
– Design a UAV system that transmits altitude, GPS location, and video feed to a remote operator
– Design attachable landing gear that allows the UAV to land and take-off from 45-degree slopes and rocky terrain
– Build and test the UAV and landing gear systems
Approach
– Update Boeing engineers in weekly teleconferences
– Conduct research on existing UAV shortcomings and solutions
– Identify and purchase UAV components, including frame, propellers, motors, power source, and flight control system
– Design a landing gear solution that uses coarse and fine adjustment to adapt to new terrain
– Identify landing gear components, including microcontroller, motors, and fasteners
– Optimize landing gear design for additive manufacturing, to 3D print most components
– Digitally model the UAV and landing gear system in SolidWorks
– Conduct Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to analyze system stresses
– Produce a system diagram that outlines the deployment process for the landing gear
– Fly the UAV in test flights to collect telemetry data and assess system performance
– Digitally test the landing gear using motion studies in SolidWorks
Outcomes
– Our UAV and landing gear systems can be assembled rapidly with commercially available parts and 3D printed components.
– Our UAV meets the size, weight, and flight requirements that were specified for a search and rescue aircraft.
– Constant video feed to a remote operator enables the identification of a person on the ground.
– Our adaptive landing gear handles flat, stepped, or rugged terrain and slopes greater than 45° with omnidirectional landing configurations.