SmartFish is a fish shaped airplane. The project is about building a complete navigation system and ground station for it. The first big experiment will be an autonomous flight from a balloon at 15km of altitude. The experiment is part of the RexusBexus campaign for 2009. Here there is more information about the project and the team.
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Testing the parachute, revisited.
Posted on June 16th, 2009 No commentsWe don’t want to destroy the SF0, so we thought of making a testing platform for the parachute deployment system. It has the same dimensions as the space available in the SF1 for the parachute, we can now test our free-fall sensor, springs… everything that in case something is wrong in Kiruna during the flight, to be sure that the parachute will be deployed successfully.
Testing platform for the parachute.
As the previous tests, we will do them from the roof of our building, using the PVC gray rails in the photo to launch the “missile” with the parachute in it.
Héctor and Santiago making the testing platform
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The Space-Fish crew will attend the 19th ESA Symposium on European Rocket and Balloon Programmes and Related Research
Posted on June 5th, 2009 No commentsDuring the next week, Héctor will represent the Space-Fish project during the next ESA Symposium on European Rocket and Ballon Programmes and Related Research. This will be the first official presentation of the Space-Fish to the scientific comunity.
Héctor will show to the audience the main targets of the project and its status next Monday at 16:45.
More details about the Symposium can be found here http://www.spaceflight.esa.int/pac-symposium2009/ .
The Space-Fish crew
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Autopilot prototype
Posted on June 3rd, 2009 No commentsHello again,
today we want to show you our first prototype, don’t let your eyes betray you! It includes 3 gyros, 3 accelerometers, radio-link with a range of 10 miles, temperature sensor and GPS!
This version only has one microprocessor, it is our workbench to study mechanical vibrations, radio interferences, interface with the aircraft motor and actuators, power consumption etc, and of course, for logging all our flights!
Also we tested it under -18ºC, with LiPo batteries, without any thermal protection, and at this moment, it works fine under this conditions.
Autopilot testing prototype
Fernando is dealing with his exams this month, the next week he will be back! and we will start to present prettier all our data flights. I hope we can show you soon videos and data from our flights.
