Archimedes UAV 1.0
Read our 2024 Technical Design Paper
Frame
Dimensions
Receiver
Video Transmitter
Flotation Device
Main Battery
Drone-Retriever with Rapid Development of Airbag using CO2 Cartridge
Tattu 22000mAh 6S Battery
Onboard Companion Computer
Payload Battery
460mm (L) x 460mm (B) x 397.51mm (H)
Holybro X650
Motors
Flight Controller
TMotor MN4014 Navigator Type UAV Multi-Motor KV400
Holybro Pixhawk 6X Flight Controller
Transmitter
FPV Camera
RadioMaster TX16S Radio Controller (ELRS)
Foxeer Mini Predator 5 Racing FPV Camera 4ms Latency
RUSH Solo Tank 5.8GHz
ELRS RP1 Receiver
Elements 62000mAh 3S Battery
Raspberry Pi 4B
Electronic Speed Controllers
Robotic Arm
AIR 40A 2-6S Multi-Rotor UAV ESC
DF Robot 5-DOF Robotic Arm
Technical Information
UAV Design
Stronger Than Ever
The carbon fibre X650 frame is lightweight yet sturdy, providing sufficient strength to handle our heavy payload with its 6.3kg takeoff weight.
Pairing TMotors’ MN4014 400kv brushless motors with 17 inch carbon fibre propellers, our UAV achieves a 2:1 thrust-to-weight ratio for healthy motor performance throughout operations.
A large capacity 22000mAh 6S LiPo battery powers our UAV to handle long duration missions of more than 20 minutes.
Always Be In Control
The Pixhawk 6X Flight Controller, along with the M9N GPS module and Sik Telemetry radio, forms the control and communications systems of our UAV. Its PX4 autopilot allows us to use MAVLink protocol for autonomous progamming of the UAV’s behaviour.
Not only that, we also get access to vital capabilities, such as precision landing using apriltags like Aruco markers, and survey path planning within a known search boundary.
In case of emergencies, manual control of the UAV can be instantly taken back by using a handheld radio controller or a ground communication system that communicates directly with the flight controller.
Eyes in the Sky
Field View : 84°(D)×68°(H)×56°(V)
Sensor Active Area : 9248(H)×6944(V)
With these specs, the Arducam 64MP Autofocus provides sharp vision from above. It’s autofocus feature ensures clear vision, while its high resolution allows precise detection of target objects no matter how small.
Using python packages like OpenCV and YOLO, the 64MP Autofocus allows us to efficiently detect target objects from afar.
Always within Reach
A robotic arm attached to the bottom of our UAV picks up and drops off external payloads. Working closely with our vision module, the arm moves with great precision to the target item via inverse kinematics and picks the target item up.
Its movement is carefully constrained to ensure that its movement does not obstruct or hit other hardware on our UAV.
Rising to the Challenge
We installed DroneRetriver’s floatation devices to automatically deploy a buoy to keep our UAV afloat for retrieval in case of a water landing.
The water soluble trigger bobbin allows for the compressed CO2 gas cylinder to inflate the buoy within seconds, giving a 6.4kg buoyancy force to our UAV per floatation device.
The consumable materials like the trigger bobbin and gas cylinder can be easily changed for reuse of the device.