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2023-09-30 Pathing Script Flight Test

2023-09-30 Pathing Script Flight Test

Owned by Hardy Yu, created
Last updated: 2023-10-13 by Anthony Luo

Make sure to update the Title following the format “Jan 01, 2020 Flight Test”

 Flight Preparation

Requested by:

@Mihir Gupta

Required Sub-team integration efforts

Mech
Electrical
EFS
CV
Operation
Sys-Int

Date of Request

Jan 25, 2023

Location and Time

@WREST RC 10 - 12 am

Goal Summary

Test the Pathing Script can work at WREST RC

Approved?

Yes / Pending / No

 Mandatory Attendees

Name

Phone #

Role

Reason

Name

Phone #

Role

Reason

 @Hardy Yu

 

Flight Test Lead

  • Creating documentation

  • Booking the test flight

  • Creating a thread in #flight-staging

 @Nathan Green

 

 Pilot in Command

  • Aircraft preparation

  • Filling out documentation

@Daniel Puratich

 

Safety

  • Making sure everyone is safe

  • Bringing Med kit

@Mihir Gupta

 

Autonomy Rep

  • Install Pathing Script to the Ground station laptop

  • Diagnose issue with the software at the flight test

 Auxilliary Attendees

Name

Role

Name

Role

@Georgia Westerlund

 

@Ethan Ahn@Arjun Sodhi @Dylan Finlay

 

Drivers & Seat Arrangement

Driver

Vehicle Type

Passenger

Driver

Vehicle Type

Passenger

@Nathan Green

Rav 4

 

@Georgia Westerlund

Personal Vehicle

 

 

 

 

Goals/Objectives

Objective

Priority

Owner(s)

Objective

Priority

Owner(s)

The waypoints generated by the pathing script can successfully bring the drone to the desired path in the autonomous f flight mode

 

@Mihir Gupta

 

 

 

Flight Test Timeline

Date/Time

Action

Date/Time

Action

10:00 am

Flight test member come to the bay

10:15 am

Briefing @ WARG Bay

10:30 am

Arrival at Flight Test Location

 

Pilot operates several general manual flights to get familiar with controlling houston

 

Run Pathing script and autonomous flights

1:30 pm

Debrief

Incident Procedures

Incident

Location

Procedure

Incident

Location

Procedure

Crash

WRESTRC

  • Identify last known location & flight path of the aircraft

  • Divide into teams of 3 and decide on communication protocol

< otherwise >

 

Flyaway

 

Outline the procedure for flyaways. List relevant contact information for local authorities and plans of action to recover control of the aircraft

Fire

WRESTRC

  • Designate 911 contact

  • Describe incident (Drone crashed, contains LiPo batteries)

  • Give location of team (Skid pad at the Waterloo Region Emergency Services Training Center)

  • Give best approximation of the location of the drone

< otherwise >

 

Injury

 

  • Apply first aid as required.

Property Damage

 

 

Week-Before To-Do List

Drone Registration

Drone Registration Number:

Flight test location booked
Pilot scheduled
Test Plan (What we are testing)
This should also include the flight path where applicable
Subteam action items (for flight readiness)
Clone pathing repository to WARG laptop
Test pathing repository on simulator
Have QR code ready on phone
Transportation logistics finalized
Booking SDC vehicles
Assigning drivers
Renting any needed equipment (trailer? generator? etc.)

Day-Before To-Do List

SDC Vehicle key collected (if required)
Batteries Planned for (DON'T LEAVE CHARGING OVERNIGHT)
Drone batteries & spares
Transmitter batteries
Battery tester/indicator
On-site kit together
First Aid Kit
Ground station / Laptop
Antenna / Receivers
Transmitter
Extra Water
Power cords / Extension cables
Wrenches
Allen keys
Knives
Tape
Rope/string
Zip/Velcro ties
Radios
Safety goggles
Fire extinguisher
Spare foam
hot glue gun w/ hot glue stick
harnesses
Airfame assembled
ESCs/flight controller wired
Radio equipment tested
Channel mappings
Flight modes
Motors tested
Wiring secured (Harnessing)
End-to-end test (neglecting props)
Check the center of gravity
All components not on the airframe that are required should be in the flight box (e.g. props & prop nuts)
Airframe payload
Spare parts
Props
Airframe components (landing struts, arms, etc)
wings nuts
prop nuts
any detached components such as angle mount
props for other aircrafts such as Houston
Hardware to assemble these components
Electronics
ESCs
Motors
Flight controllers
Receiver
Flight Code Flashed
Ground station Software updated
Ground station laptop is shut down and put to charge

Pre-Departure Checklist

Take the WREST RC entrance card
Grab Pre-departure Items
Battery charger and associated cables(30tx to 60tx)
Check battery status
Charge if required, otherwise place into flight box
Systems test
Check flight controller orientation
Check motor spin & rotation direction
Check transmitter mappings
Verify communication links (VTX/RX, Controller, Groundstation)
Verify the mission planner is logging data
Only attach props directly before flight (keep off at all other times)
Get snacks
Mission Briefing
Read the flight plan to the team (that was made a week ago)
Purpose of flight
Plan of action
Success criteria
Delegate and brief on flight line roles
Safety Briefing
Key flight characteristics to observe
Key system characteristics to observe
Measurements to be made

Pre-flight Safety Checklist

Air Frame
Check all antennas, ensuring they are secure and in good condition
Check the battery emplacement and secure attachment and ensure there are no cracks
Check that all lights are operating normally
Check that all sensors are secured and clear of any obstructions
Check that the GPS is receiving satellites and providing a navigation solution
For fixed wing aircraft, Check:
Wings, ensuring they are securely attached to fuselage
Wing leading edge surfaces
Top and bottom of wing surfaces
Wing tip surfaces
Read of wing and all flight control surfaces for freedom of movement, security and any skin damage
For rotary aircraft:
Inspect top and bottom of air frame arms for cracks, loose parts, or signs of damage
Check fluid levels and ensure no leaks if applicable
Control Surfaces
Ensure Elevator moves correctly
Ensure Ailerons move correctly
Ensure Rudder moves correctly
Landing Gear
Check landing gear is secure
Inspect skids or wheels, especially attachment points
Power plant
Cowling or motor casing
Security of engine mounts
Presence of any cracks
All wiring and connectors, ensure no cracks, loose connectors, or chaffing
Propellers / Rotors
Ensure propeller is secured
Check for nicks, chips or cracks
Ensure prop direction is correct
Batteries
Inspect to ensure there is no signs of swelling, external leaking or other defects
Battery wiring and connectors from the battery are connected securely
Batteries (and spares) are adequately charged
Wires are not pinched
Control Station / Receivers / Transmitter
The battery and spare batteries if required are adequately charged
Control Station device and cables are properly connected and functioning
All flight interfaces are functioning normally
Safety
Good visibility and safe wind speed
Surrounding is free of obstacles
Crew far from drone
General Site Survey
Are there other people on the property
Ground Recording / drone footage on
Autopilot
Control surfaces respond to autopilot in the correct manner
Transitions between flight modes have expected effect
Return-to-home systems, if present, have been configured

Post-Flight Checklist

Item

Owner

Item

Owner

Use Flight-Post Mortem to Debrief

ALL MEMBERS PRESENT

Discard of damaged batteries

 

Discharge used batteries for better longevity

 

Flight Test Debrief

Flight Test Timeline

The flight test went from about 11:30 - 1:30 @ WRESTRC

  • Test 1: A manual-controlled flight with a pilot

  • Test 2: Attempt to load the pathing MAVLink info onto Mission Planner failed

  • Test 3: Auto-mission of manually set waypoints on Mission Planner

  • Test 4: Another attempt to load the pathing MAVLink onto Mission Planner

Test #1:

Configuration:

The same setup in Houston as the flight test in the previous week.

After the pilot got familiar with the controller profile, he took off the drone in loiter mode.

Obersavtions and result:

Houston still has the arming issue when something gets “RC link not found“ and “GPS1 configuration error“(forgot if this is the exact warning). But the warning disappears after waiting for a while or pressing the button on GPS.

Houston could fly pretty well under the control of pilot

 

Test #2:

Attempt:

Connected MissionPlanner to drone over COM6 and opened MavLink over TCP port 14550. After scannign QR code timeout error occurred from dronekit.

Problem:

Python script was not able to connect to Mission Planner with TCP → COM 6 over MavLink. Originally tested with simulator which communicates over TCP port. This was indicated by a timeout error in the console which occurred after successfully reading the QR code.

Test #3:

The autonomy group decided to run an auto-mission without the involvement of the pathing script.

Nathan(pilot) configured on the Pixhawk such that I can take off under auto mode when disarmed

Three waypoints are drawn on the mission planner. Houston flew really well on in the auto take-off, hitting the waypoints, and auto-landing

 

Test #4:

After testing the drone with a direct USB connection the Python script was successfully able to load the coordinates to mission planner but failed to do so via Remote connection. The script kept crashing with the timeout error, indicating it wasn’t able to establish a connection to the drone.

Analytics (hopefully applicable)

(please fill out)

Flight Test Post Mortem // Final Thoughts // Condensed Summary

  • Drone didn’t crash

  • successfully take off auto

  • no control link issue

  • didn’t forget anything

  • good pictures

  • wrong power module type

  • failed to connect the tcp through COM

RCA for Red Items

Create a RCA and keep it as a child page.

 

Action Items

get the issue fixed (tcp through COM port)
find PMO2-D module

Other Resources

Booking WRESTRC Field

WRESTRC

 

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