Discussions

Hi. I’m a completely new to UAVs. My son (age 11) wants my help designing one. Now, I know very little about aerodynamics. The good news is that I am a former electrical and computer engineer, so, if I’m given motors, batteries and other electronic components, I can make them work. We’ve decided to do this in two stages. First, we are building a smaller scale model hexacopter out of balsa wood approximately 1 foot in diameter to learn what works and what doesn’t, where pitfalls may lie, etc. My son has lofty goals for it all (a chip off the old block), but the second stage is roughly a 3-ft model that will have a camera, carry a payload, and be either flown via the web or by autopilot which I see is something of a specialty here. 

Regarding our small model, I at first thought we could experiment with controlling the RPM and lift of individual motors and, thereby, control the pitch, yaw and direction of travel. However, in ordering some small parts for testing, I’ve learned that half of the rotors spin clockwise and the other spin counter-clockwise, something I would have never thought of without trial and error. This brings to mind my first question for this forum. Are there any reference books or online guides to step through the aerodynamic principles of multicopter models? Like hexacopters for dummies? 

Thanks! 

Michael