|
The Missouri S&T AESS UAV Team is working hard designing their autonomous RC Plane and by the looks of the latest test flight things are progressing nicely! "Using HIL simulation allowed us to all to get a better of idea of what we had to do once we got out to the airfield. In the end performing the HIL simulation in the lab saved us a lot of time and allowed me to get more familiar with tuning the PID control loops for the autopilot. Previously we had not used the PID window in Virtual Cockpit, but after using it in the HIL simulation it proved to be invaluable for properly tuning the autopilot, it allows you to see the actual, desired, and effort of a certain control parameter (i.e. pitch, roll, yaw, altitude, etc.). Previously we had had issues seeing a change in the behavior from the ground after changing a certain PID gain. On the first flight soon after takeoff the aircraft became unstable and began to become uncontrollable and began oscillating wildly, fortunately our pilot Kyle was able to get it back on the ground without any damage. It turns out that our CG was too far aft, but after adjusting the CG we were able to continue with testing. Using the PID window and the having performed the same process of tuning the autopilot in HIL mode, the first few flights went quickly and we were able to quickly tune the level 1 control loops within two 15-minute flights." Via: DIY Drones
|
|
When a Malfunctioning Elmo utters Death Threats what can be done? Seems that there is a small bug in the new Elmo that can plug into a computer to enhance its vocabulary. When the batteries were changed the Elmo toy started to say "Kill James". James is the name of the little boy who plays with the toy! To make it worse he now repeats the phrase… While I think no one will be traumatized for life I wonder what went wrong to make this happen? Could there be some secret phrases (easter eggs) that are only released when certain events are performed? Time will only tell. You might remember the funny burning Elmo video we featured some time ago. Have a look at the new lot of Elmo videos below. Warning if you have little children around who love Elmo, please have them leave the room first.
|
|
This Big Bird Hover Craft project makes good use of PIC microcontrollers and powerful motors to get some good speed on the ice. Watch the video, this thing looks like it is fun to drive! "Project Big Bird required two circuits, each with specialized functions: Onboard PIC circuit: Host PIC circuit: Via: Trossen Robotics
|
|
This RC Car project shows you the perfect method of allowing your RC car to get a drifting workout without you having to do all the work! "The Autonomous Drifter spawned from a project/tutorial suggestion in the forums. Namely from Simplywel. In the most simplest of terms, it’s a hacked rc car, but really only the remote control has been hacked. The car itself wasn’t altered in any way. A microcontroller inside the controller allows your computer to give commands to the remote which controls the car. Using some simple automation we get an Autonomous Drifter!"
|
|
Have a look at Robomagellan from the guys at the Ottawa Robot Enthusiasts. It was inspired by the DARPA Challenge! Videos after the jump. "Robots traverse a pre-defined course dealing with various obstacles along the way. Waypoints may be marked with objects that the robot must touch or come within a specified distance. The robots will be guided primarily by GPS and vision systems. Robots will be fully autonomous, but do not necessarily have to be self contained, i.e. it is ok to have a laptop with a wireless or even wired link to the robot."
|
|
Jeffkobi shows us a simple way to make a popular toy much cooler. Seems like the hula hoop is not as popular as it once was but what if the ones in the store were LED Hula Hoops? I think they would be selling like hot cakes! "Some friends wanted a lighted hula hoop for burningman, and when they turned out to be about $200 each, I decided to make one. All the parts cost about $15 . . . total time to make the hoop was about 3 hours, but that included time for figuring things out. You could probably make one in less than 2 hours with this instructable and soldering skills . . . Supplies:
|
|
Some of these videos look a bit suspicious… Any fakes amongst them? I could see how the RC car that is tethered to the center pole could achieve some tremendous speed but I wonder if the video was simply sped up?
|
The first video might be considered racial by some people, it is all in fun but don’t watch it is this type of video turns you off.
