Team Flying Camels
Nawar Chaker
Paul Savage
Tim Jacobs
Pete Dokter
Adam Swartley
Capstone Project
January 22, 2005
Capstone Project
Team Flying Camels
Driftsonde System Overview
The National Center for Atmospheric Research, NCAR, currently has a project
involving a high altitude pressure balloon that periodically drops sensors from a
payload
These sensors are used to measure pressure, temperature, humidity and wind speed
from a height of 60,000 feet down to the surface
These sensors send data back to the payload, which then relays to an iridium
satellite and then finally transferred to a ground station
The project currently is successful, with flight times of three days and twenty
sensors
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Driftsonde System
Iridium
OrbComm
LEO Satellite
LEO
Satellite
Zero-pressure
Balloon
Gondola Gondola
(24 sonde
(20-40
sondecapacity)
capacity)
~16km
50-100 mb
6 hours
between
drops
NORTH
AMERICA
© 2004 Copyright University
Corporation for Atmospheric Research
ATLANTIC OCEAN
EUROPE
Capstone Project
© 2004 Copyright University
Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Team Flying Camels
Capstone Project
Team Flying Camels
Driftsonde Components
Flight train
1.
Low cost polyethylene zero-pressure balloon (365 m3 & 2,265 m3)
2.
Parachute
3.
Radar reflector
4.
Aircraft Transponder
5.
Gondola
•
Embedded Computer
•
GPS Navigation System
•
Flight level PTH sensor
•
Ballast System
•
Lithium battery power system
•
Iridium, global coverage
2-way satellite system
•
Dropsondes
© 2004 Copyright University
Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Capstone Project
© 2004 Copyright University
Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Team Flying Camels
Capstone Project
© 2004 Copyright University
Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Team Flying Camels
Capstone Project
© 2004 Copyright University
Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Team Flying Camels
NSF THORPEX Briefing, D. Parsons, 11/21/03
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Current System limitations
Excessive weight
Battery Weight
Heavy release mechanism
Battery life limits flight times to 3-5 days
Twenty sondes maximum per gondola
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Driftsonde Main Goals
Extend flight time
Increase maximum number of sondes to fifty
Balloon size must remain the same
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Proposal
Increase the available power by utilizing renewable energy sources, possibly solar
Decrease the weight of the gondola by decreasing the weight of the power system,
i.e. batteries
Implement a monitoring system for the battery health
Streamline a release mechanism to conserve weight
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Power System
Options:
Solar: Simplest
Generator: Heavy
Kinetic: Not enough energy
Non-rechargeable batteries: Limited life span
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Power System
Block diagram
Solar
Panels
Power
Conversion
Battery
System
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Power System
Constraints
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Cost: $200 materials only
Total weight 3Kg
Environment
inside: -20C to +40C
outside: -60 to +40,60,80C
Duration Scale from 4 - 10 days operation
Operate at 50,000 to 80,000 feet (look at from a pressure standpoint)
System Electronics
a. IRIDIUM (5V)
b. Transponder (12V) (only operates below 48,000 feet) High power device
c. System electronics (5V)
d. Peak current (during drop of sondes) approximately 1.7 A
System health monitoring (if something goes wrong tell us what happed)
battery voltage
solar power voltage
charge current
discharge current
Operate independent on ground for 24 hours (14 A-hrs battery capacity)
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Health Monitor System
Monitor battery voltage
Solar power voltage
Charge current
Discharge current
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Release Mechanism
Options
Wireless RF : Expensive
Wireless Induction: Simple and feasible
Daisy Chain Bus: Simplest, but possibly heavy
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Release Mechanism
Wireless Induction block diagram
Balloon Control
RX Coil
TX Processor
Envelope Detector
Driver
RX Processor
TX Coil
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Release Mechanism
Daisy Chain block diagram
Balloon
Sonde 1
CANBUS (?)
Element Burn (?)
Sonde 2
Sonde 3
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Release Mechanism
Constraints
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Control 50 Sondes!
Cost:
$5 per sonde maximum
$25 per Gondola maximum
Functions:
Capable to turn sondes on or off and during drop always on.
Turn on for testing in the field then turn off.
Cut the sondes from package
Command only one sonde at a time - power it release it
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Project Considerations
Economic Aspects
Environmental impact
Sustainability
Manufacturability
Safety
Impact on society
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Economic Aspects
Will be used as a research item, so no real marketability
Ball park figure for complete full system: $475 (Parts only)
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Environmental Impact
Gondola is reusable
Sondes are expendable and lost
Environmental impact of sonde electronics is considered negligible
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Sustainability and Manufacturability
Systems will be implemented from common parts, insuring a good supply
Batteries may need to be replaced in gondola before flight
Expect system to be robust enough to overcome manufacturing tolerances
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Safety Concerns
Balloon release
Existing safety procedures are already in place
Our system does not introduce any new safety concerns
Low power devices
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Team Flying Camels
Impact on Society
Information gathered from sondes assists weather predictions
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Division of Labor
Sonde Release Mechanism
Paul Savage
Pete Dokter
Power System and System Health Monitoring
Nawar Chaker
Tim Jacobs
Adam Swartley
All team members will be working on each aspect of the project, in order to have a
firm understanding of all components
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Gantt Chart
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Project Risks and Contingencies
Unsure if entire system will work together
Unsure if we can interface our changes with their current system
Unsure of power system components, such as battery charging and solar panels
Unsure of temperature and pressure effects on the entire system
Unknown if system will exceed target weight
Unsure of total cost
Plan to have all prototyping done by Milestone II
Work harder and smarter
Capstone Project
Team Flying Camels
Questions/ Comments?