Electrical Systems Overview
The electrical team handles all matters related to electronics for TUAS. The main projects that we work on are listed below.
Airdrop Mechanism
Revolving "magazine" capable of holding and releasing 5 water bottles independently.
Antenna Tracker
The device that maintains a wireless connection between the GCS and the plane by pointing the Ubiquiti NanoStation at the plane as it flies.
General Avionics
The electronics on board the aircraft that are necessary for it to fly. Includes servos, power modules, ESCs, and other general wiring.
Power Board
PCB that conveniently and safely distributes power to the main components on the plane, including the camera, RocketAC, network switch, and camera gimbal. Note that the Pixhawk has an independent power source so that the plane doesn't crash in case of a malfunction.
Signals Board
An Arduino that handles the data from various sensors on the plane and sends it to the PixHawk via MAVLink messages. This info can then be displayed on the GCS interface (Houston 2).