Weekly Update (Patreon)

This week, the first revision of the Vector flight computer and Thrust Vectoring breakout are in fabrication! The process takes a few days; fabrication should be done by April 13th, this Thursday. I expect to get boards in the mail early next week, and immediately begin placing and soldering components. This is the first PCB I've designed, so it may take a second revision before I get a working flight computer, but I've got my fingers crossed! If you're interested, here's a good chuck of the board layout being designed and routed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ew1axNSm_tE

In other news, I have a preliminary design complete for a low power canard setup, to be used in a 40mm airframe(test pieces are in the printer right now!). The fins and mounting points are not designed for for the high stress of larger model rockets, perhaps above a D motor, though that's pretty speculative. The fins attach directly to the servos, and are actuated without any gearing down. This setup is somewhat non-ideal, and may not yield great results.  I'll test it once the Vector flight software is in a workable state and evaluate the next step. Though they're not designed or built yet, larger airframe canard setups should be higher accuracy, and much more structurally sound. 

Speaking of the flight software, it needs a name! I've followed themes related to returning or reversing in the past with names like Fetch and Zener, where the goal was to bring the rocket back with a propulsive landing. Since the goal of the Vector system will be a bit different, aiming to keep things on track/course, I'm looking for suggestions! Leave a comment on this post with a software name, or perhaps flight computer name, that would make sense!