Building Your Own Drones

Introduction xiii
Who This Book Is For xiii
How This Book Is Organized xiii


Chapter 1 A History of Drones 1
What Is a Drone? 2
Three Terrrains 3
Anatomy of a Drone 5
Summary 7


Chapter 2 Showcase of Cool DIY Drones 9
Bicycle Rim Quadcopter 9
3D-Printed Mini Quadcopter 9
Clothesline Racer 11
Vessels 11
Radio-Controlled Blimp 12
FPV Quadcopter 12
Open RC Trike 14
Foldable Quadcopter 14
Mini-Quadcopter 15
3D-Printed RC Boat 16
Tricopter 17
Mecanum Wheel Rover 18
Summary 19


Chapter 3 Overview of Commercial Drones and Kits 21
Parallax ELEV-8 Quadcopter 21
DJI Phantom 2 Vision+ 24
OpenROV 26
Actobotics Nomad 29
Brooklyn Aerodrome Flack 31
Summary 34


Chapter 4 Building a Quadcopter I: Choosing an Airframe 35
Which Airframe? 35
Choosing Between Commercial Options 37
Making Your Own Airframe 38
Project #1: MakerBeam Airframe 41
MakerBeam 41
Parts 43
Steps 44
Summary 50


Chapter 5 Rocket Drone Project 51
Amateur Model Rocketry 51
Quick-and-Dirty Arduino Guide 54
Project #2: Data-Gathering Rocket 60
Parts for Building the Data-Gathering Rocket 60
Steps for Building the Data-Gathering Rocket 61
Programming the Payload 65
Summary 67


Chapter 6 Building a Quadcopter II: Motors and Props 69
Choose Your Motors 70
Outrunner Versus Inrunner 70
Brushed Versus Brushless 71
AC Versus DC 72
Choose Your Propellers 73
Prop Adapters 74
Project #3: Attach the Props and Motors 75
Parts 76
Steps for Attaching the Props and Motors 77
Summary 80


Chapter 7 Blimp Drone Project 81
Radio Control 81
Transmitters 82
Receivers 83
ESC (Electronic Speed Controller) 83
Project #4: Blimp Drone 84
Parts 85
Arduino Parts&