I took one of the CS499 special topics classes at school this semester, and in it each group made two Kinect-based games. This “Urban Ice Cream Truck” game was one of the two games that I helped make. I contributed the the Xbox and Kinect code, while other students contributed the artwork for the project. All of our games were based on Artem Kavalov‘s Prime Engine framework. The goal of…
Author: Josh
PlaneTools
My biggest contribution to USC’s AeroDesign Team this year was a new MATLAB repository called PlaneTools. PlaneTools includes a collection of programs that aim to make airplane design easier. Chief among these programs is a mission simulator with simulates an airplane’s flight based on the rules of the AIAA Design/Build/Fly competition that we make planes for. A user of PlaneTools can construct a plane out of parts in the PlaneTools…
The Ball Bot
I’ve started a new robot project! This will be one of the most challenges personal projects I’ve embarked on. I have the following goals: designed to be a flexible software test platform mechanical design from scratch in SolidWorks, manufactured from G10 low level control through off-the-shelve electronics including an Arduino, SparkFun Quadstepper motor controller, ITG-3200 Gyro, and BMA180 Accelerometer high-level control through mini-ITX computer onboard running ROS 2D SLAM w/…
Flying Wing
Check out my new flying wing! The plane is made from a pair of EasyStar wing tips, a custom kevlar body (thanks Geoff!), and a handfull of electronics. The design is loosely based off of the AeroVironment Wasp. Below is a short video showing a few build photos and a recent flight set to the smooth tones of The Black Keys. Check back later for some high resolution still photos…
New Quadrotor Frame
I recently decided to update my quadrotor’s frame. This frame was designed in SolidWorks and cut from 1/16 inch G10. It has considerations for a GoPro camera, a downward facing ultrasonic sensor, ArduPilot Mega and Arduino (ArduCopter) boards, and much more. I’m pretty happy about how it came out. Let me know what you think in the comments! Update: This frame was not able to fly. Turns out the motor…
Quick Flight at USC
I had a quick flight at USC this morning with the Extra 300 and the GoPro HD Hero. Below are two pictures from the flight. The third picture was taken from an EasyStar this afternoon near the Coliseum during an AeroDesign Team test flight. Click on the pictures to view larger (OK, really large) versions.
RC Flying w/ GoPro HD
I took out my new GoPro HD Hero Naked camera today for a spin on my ParkZone Extra 300. I used the full HD recording (1920×1080 pixels @ 30 fps) option and the footage looks pretty good if you ask me! The only thing that kinda bothered me is how the exposure setting seemed to be changing every time towards sun. I would have rather the screen just be bright…
Scalable Advisory System for Structural Health
Woo! We finished our senior project. We have created a system of wireless accelerometers to measure the structural health of buildings. See below for some pictures and downloads. Abstract: A Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) System, relying on identification of changes to a structures resonant frequency to recognize potential structural damage and provide alerts, is designed and implemented. A module, using a 3-axis MEMS-based digital accelerometer, capable of measuring and wirelessly…
Five Hour Plane
I few months ago I got the tiny Turnigy Slowflier from HobbyKing. The plane is fun to fly in confined spaces, but is pretty fragile. Well, if finally fell apart today and I decided to make a new plane with the electronics. It’s a pretty basic design as you can see from the pictures. The build took only about five hours and I have named it ‘The Mini Dude.’ The…
Grand Challenges LED Display
This year USC is hosting the National Academy of Engineering’s Grand Challenges Summit. One of my advisors at school has been putting in a lot of work for the summit, so I decided to make him this cool little display. It is battery powered and controlled by an Arduino mini. What do you think?