Quadrocopter - Part 1 - Getting Started

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The first time i heard about a quadrocopter was when i saw a video on how the special effects in spiderman 2 were done (the scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NLgY6f60CA at 1:45 was shot using a quadrocopter).I was amazed at the maneuverability of this machine.I wanted one but buying one was out of the question mainly because of the cost of a ready-made product. Also personally i would be happier if i built one instead of buying it.

So about about 2 weeks ago i though i would go ahead and build one. I still have no idea what i will do with it when i'm done but who cares. I ordered all the mechanical parts i would need (details later) , bought a drill  and got to work on fabricating the body of the quadrocopter. 

The design is fairly simple(as is the case with most quadrocopters). It is basically an X shaped system (built with aluminium rods, acrylic sheets and bolts) with a with a brushless motor connected to a propeller at each end. The electronics, batteries, and the "flight computer" (as my roommate calls it) go in the center of the X. 

Here are some pictures of my progress so far along with the details of the components used:


The entire quadrocopter will fit in a circle of 16" radius.


The center console. Size 6"X6"


The acrylic sheet used is 3mm thick.


Aluminum rods used are 3/4" thick.


The motors : CF2822 - Details


Motor Mount


Motor Fixed and all wired up


The Electronic Speed Controller (ESC) - 18A - Details


Propellers - 9x6E - Clockwise


Propeller mounted on the motor


Prop-Savers


Battery - 2300mah - 20C 11.1V


Battery Charger

All the components(motors,charges,batteries,ESC,propellers) i bought were from rcdhmaka India as they had the most competitive prices.The aluminium,acrylic sheet,bolts were bought from various shops locally.

Next phase would be to get the quadrocopter to fly but that will have to wait for a week or so as i have some animation work that i need to finish.I Hope to get it up and running by the end of the month.

I have brought all the electronics that will be required to control the system. The only thing that remain are the accelerometer and gyro sensors (will probably hack the Wii controller or the PS3 move to get them) and the RF control modules.I will do a bit of research before i order these component.

Also my roommate is also building one (actually to be fair it was his idea to start building it in the first place) so for detailed buildlogs you can visit his blog (http://muditsdiy.blogspot.com/). You can also send me a mail if u have any queries.

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