In this page you will find step by step on how Carter Donahue and I make a drone for the STEAM Fair 2023.
That’s a job well done!
We choose this project because we wanted a challenge and we got one. Trial and error is a big part of this project in order to achieve our goal; a drone that flies.
Check In #1 is in the past which means Carter and I are 2 weeks into our Passion Project (Drone). We have an initial Fusion 360 design which will likely change but it is a good baseline to start with. We have planned out a basic outline and how we will record our progress.
Check in #2 completed!. Carter and I have met our deadlines for this check in which was to have a printed protype we can test and adjust for future prototypes. Currently we have found some issues that we are fixing on the snap on snap off system but we do believe that our next print will be successful which is our next goal before check in #3. We want to have a prototype that can snap on/off as well as hopefully hold the drone system inside (pretty much a working prototype).
Check in was short and brief but good. Mr Csuka just asked us how we were doing and we said that we are good, currently printing our 8th prototype but this time we are going to glue it together. So far he is satisfied with our work and our progress therefore sent us on our way pretty quick. We have made over 10 prints but now it really feels like we are getting close.
As you may see, the self attaching system is gone. we are gluing it together.
Quick easy check in. Carter and I made a lot of progress in the last week or so as we finally created a successful drone. It took us over 12 3D prints, 8 prototypes, and just over a month to find success. Its been a fun experience so far and a pleasure to work with Carter. Our protype 8.0 is the fully functional prototype that we can’t wait to showcase.
The entire project went excellent, we had time to spare to test our drone and come up with little extra ideas to improve our presentation which ended in the idea of laser cutting 100+ wooden tokens to give out as something to remember our project. By Carter and I splitting work made it incredibly efficient to get things done. I think something we could have done differently is keep all protypes created instead of just a few. I think it would also be good to include more information on the PowerPoint such as cost, and science.
Carter and I have talked and we don’t plan on extending on our project therefore we have began brainstorming ideas for next years science fair.
The event itself was pretty cool. It was nice to see friends come in and check out our drone as well as test it in front of them. sometimes it good crowded but that’s okay as we were outside. The fair itself was more fun than i expected too because i thought we would have to present over and over explaining things about our drone but what really happened was that people were more interested in watching the drone fly and holding it in their hands.
The process was great, we had a plan and we stuck to it, we only made one change halfway through and that was that instead of making a clip on/off body, we would glue the two pieces together. We made this change because the walls of our design kept on breaking and not clipping properly.
Presenting was easy. As I mentioned above, people didn’t really want to hear about how we made it and more about does it work and can we see it fly, the PowerPoint was really useful for those who were shy and didn’t want to talk much but most people who asked questions asked us for the answers which is something I enjoyed.
Overall, it was very enjoyable and a great day!