learning about quadcopters by building one

3 minute read Published:

I used a soldering iron and a raspberry pi during lockdown to stay sane.
Table of Contents
My fully built Raspberry Pi + Navio2 quadcopter.
My fully built quadcopter on the ground, not flying... yet.

tl;dr My introduction to quadcopters and robotics in which I learned a lot about the quad ecosystem and their constitution. However, I suggest following a smaller, cheaper, and more recent build guide. Although my naivete showed through here, my fascination with quads has not soured; check out my Tello face following and vSLAM project!

Motivation

As much as I like software, I also like hardware. I quickly realized that pure computer science wasn’t going to expose me to much hardware so I took it upon myself in summer 2020 – mid-quarantine – to teach myself. At the time, I was stumbling down a rabbit hole and obsessing over quadcopters, yet I had never laid my hands on one. To me at the time, building a quad from parts was as good a place to start as any.

Cost

To make the journey as painless as possible, I followed a build from a $15 Udemy course that was apparently not a moneymaker because it is no longer listed. The build that I followed was not current; the drone industry moves fast and parts will shift in and out of compatibility. You can find potentially better, much cheaper, sufficiently thorough builds on YouTube. The community is dedicated so up-to-date build guides are very likely.

If you don’t need tools, then this build is approx $500. Again, there are budget drone builds, that are current and probably more satisfying – don’t reinvent the wheel. Or, you could buy a $100 Tello and program the hell out of it.

Part List

Disclaimer: some of these parts may no longer be available.

Raspberry Pi: https://amzn.to/2mrd72g

NAVIO Kit (Need Power module, wires and GPS): https://store.emlid.com/product/navio2/?wpam_id=3

ESCs 4 PACK: https://amzn.to/2kTweBt

Motors 4 PACK: https://amzn.to/2ltKilA

RC Controller: https://amzn.to/2n05Zdq

Frame: https://amzn.to/2mSmNCW

Props: https://amzn.to/2my3w9C

Battery: https://amzn.to/2kSlzHe

Battery Charger: https://amzn.to/2kXA1hi

Telemetry: https://amzn.to/2myfH6l

LiPo Fire-proof Case: https://amzn.to/2lsRu1i

PPM Encoder: https://amzn.to/2n1hjWR

Micro SD Card: https://amzn.to/2lvcJiS

Micro SD to USB: https://amzn.to/2n09yQQ

Battery Connector: https://amzn.to/2ltOP7A or https://amzn.to/2n0a3KI

GPS Mount: https://amzn.to/2luGOiz

Velcro Straps: https://amzn.to/2lsloTe

Scotch Mounting Tape: https://amzn.to/2mSsdxM

Zip Ties: https://amzn.to/2lveUTA

Additional tools if needed:

Soldering Iron Kit: https://amzn.to/2kZklKw

Helping Hands: https://amzn.to/2lvfxwq

Allen Wrench: https://amzn.to/2mVFfus

Electrical Tape: https://amzn.to/2ls4Niv

Spacer Kit: https://amzn.to/2NTIyeY

Drill and Drill Bits: https://amzn.to/2SQrZBK

Lessons

Building a drone is easy, getting it to fly is hard. Soldering, plugging, and fixing hardware to the frame is like legos. Flashing the flight OS onto the Raspberry Pi + Navio2 flight controller is no problem. Finding a functioning ground control software from this century = yikes. Then you just have to pray that it’s compatible with your flight controller.

On a side note, this drone is deceptively big. Although I’m not an expert aerospace engineer, I deduce that getting big things to fly is much more of a hassle than for small things, especially if you live in an apartment in the city.

One super fun takeaway: learning how components connect to the whole quad, how they communicate with each other, and how a full-fledged cyberphysical system can come together was extremely rewarding.

Large quad with exposed wires and point ends = the ultimate cat chew-toy

Future

Off and on, I may try to get this quad flying. However, it will likely remain a trophy of my first foray into quads, and also a testament to my initial learning curve. As I’ve hinted at many times, I soon intend to follow a smaller, cheaper build. Most importantly, I’m excited to take what I learned here and apply it broadly to other hardware projects.

References