10/02/2006 10:12:00 PM|||NormMonkey||| Holy crap! Three posts in one day! I guess this means I won't post again for what... three months?
From the hella-heli-fun department:
A few weeks ago, I gave a cow orker a ride to the local hobby shop where he bought himself a remote-controlled helicopter. The crucial, defining moment was when he brought it out in the office, put it in the middle of the room, and played with it (spinning it up and promptly crashing it in the process).
I spent the next week thinking about helicopters. I read about cyclic controls, gyroscopic precession, ground effect, Bell-Hiller mixing, CCPM, and lots of other helicopter- and R/C helicopter-related subjects. I even started up X-Plane and did some simulated heli flying to try and get it out of my system. Well, we all know how this part of the story ends: one week later I went and got an R/C heli of my own.
Furnituripper Smashtaculous the Blademangler
What is that thing the heli is sitting on? It's my practice ground, my helipad; a partial sheet of drywall. My lesson plan involves staying within a 1 foot box (marked on the drywall right underneath the heli).
I stuck duct tape along the edges of the drywall to protect them and keep them from shedding chalk bits all over the place, but I really want to build a helipad. I want it to have adjustable legs so I can use it as a base on uneven ground. Most of all, I want it to have lights 'cause building shit with LEDs is what hobbies are all about. That and crashing into stuff. More on that some other time.
I came up with this design:
Plans for helicopter pad
Structure
* 3' x 3' platform, G1S plywood
* 4 legs bolted to corners, 3" height
* Feet are plastic w/ nut
* Each leg has an optional extension bolt connected with a turnbuckle for adjustment
* Center leg?
Markings
* Edges marked in white
* 1' dia. circle concentric w/ platform, white
* "H" marked in centre, white
Lighting
* Edges marked with blue LEDs, 4 per edge at 1' spacing
* Circle marked with white LEDs arrayed in clock pattern
* Centre marked with "+" in red LEDs, 7 per cross (center one green? removed?), 1" spacing
* 3 white LEDs along each edge focused inward for platform light, 1' spacing offset 1/2" from the blue ones, possibly using aluminum cowl for focused beam
Design
* Protected on both sides by Sikkens Marine-grade Cetol stain
* Holes protected by drizzling some stain inside
* LEDs secured with hot glue
* Wiring across the bottom secured by routed grooves, filled with wood filler, then painted with stain
* LED powered by same battery as heli uses (11.1VDC 800mAh Li-Po). Each set of 12 lights (EdgeBlue, Circle, Cross, EdgeWhite) gets a small pot to tune the brightness and keep the LEDs from blowing. Wiring for each set is X series of Y parallel lights where X,Y in ( 2,6 | 3,4 | 4,3 ) depending on the voltage needs of the LEDs.
Other
* 2 edges each have a level
* Edge clip-on windsock?
One Day I'll Be Able to Land In an Area This Small
I suspect in the long term the more dangerous thing is having discovered the hobby shop, where all sorts of cool stuff like transceivers, servos, motors and batteries are to be found. Frankenbot, here I come!|||115984167196719615|||a.k.a. How To Remove Blade Scars from Furniture