Full System Flight

Attempt 2

Results:

• Non Functional Board
• Discovery of Electrostatic Buildup Problem

Attempt 2 was held the day following Attempt 1. The night inbetween was utiilized to replace the processor and make the flight coding more robust with added failsafes.

Key Observations:

The rocket was fully assembled with exception to the insertion of the parachutes and attaching the Nosecone. At this point the board was activated to test the ground station communication and proper board startup. Everything worked as planned with proper commuications with ground station.

The parachutes were then slid into the rocket. Another test of the board was conducted, but when the power switch was activated for the board nothing happened. After further analysis it was found that sliding in the parachutes produces a large amount of static electricity that damages the board and components. The fricition surfaces creating the static is the nomex parachute bag cloth and the micro fibered innner cardboard surface. The micro fiber surface was created when in construction of the airframe the inner wax lining was ripped out for reduced weight.

Possible Solutions:

Solution ideas that were brainstormed are;

• Addition of an ESD protection circuit to the board
• Addition of a grounded surface on the friciton plane
• Spraying copper toner within airframe to reduce buildup

Solutions are currently being analyzed. Please check back soon to see how we fixed it!

Setup:

This setup was the same as Attempt 1 and can be found there.