New here and in this field. NEED HELP!!

[Tiger]

Hi,
I am Tiger, currently doing my bachelors in mechanical engineering. I want assistance please help me honourable and respectable professionals of this field thanks. Me and my team are participating in competition in which we have to make a aircraft and we have chosed EDGE-540 as our design, all the details are described in last paragraph.
But the problem is we are totally new to this field and building rc plane first time and don't have idea as how to make its frame, how to chose parts, how to chose engine, how to automate it using arduino for manuevers and other things.

Now I'm telling the details of plane and our mission one by one.

1- Sorry I don't know the size but I know how much weight limit our university allowed us its 3.5 kg max. I don't know what size plane comes in this category this is my first problem.

2- It must be engine powered. You guide me which engine is good for the plane weights 3.5 kg.

3- It must be made from wood, may be the wood used for planes is BALSA??

4- They instructed us to first design the whole thing on ant CAD software then procede for its fabrication. But the point is HOW?? we don't know what is the shape of EDGE -540 ribs and whole body. What dimensions are for each rib so we can design it with the same dimensions on CAD software which will give us 3.5 kg wood made engine powered EDGE-540.

Now towards our missions, we have FOUR missions in this competition.

1- To do these manuevers through your plane, BARREL ROLL, VERTICAL LOOP, HAMMER HEAD all three in 4 mins and max. score is 70 POINTS for all three maneuvers. (FIRST STEP WHERE WE HAVE TO OBTAIN ALL POINTS TO WIN)

2- Second mission is performed with external payloads. In payload flight, the aircraft will take-off and first fly two different laps. one lap means that in one lap plane must complete 360 degree turn on one side RIGHT and in other lap it take 360 degree turn to the LEFT. Plane must be capable of carrying 2 payloads each of 156 gm carried externally. And drops the payload on target with servo drop mechanism.
And finally perform Immelmann turn followed by barrel roll. FOR ALL THESE WE HAVE 4.5 mins with 50 POINTS MAX. ( second opportunity for gaining points and WIN)

3- Third mission is OPTIONAL, to automate your plane by using microcontroller arduino for aircraft maneuvers like vertical loop, barrel roll. ( THIS MISSION HAS BONUS POINTS WHICH ARE 35 ) (THIS MUST BE ONE OF THE KEY TO OUR VICTORY TO GAIN THESE BONUS POINTS)

4- The fourth and final mission which is also OPTIONAL BUT ANOTHER KEY TO GAIN VICTORY BECAUSE OF BONUS POINTS is BANNER TOWING, your aircraft must be able to tow two banners one of 30 inches and other of 15 inches. ( FOR 30 INCH 35 BONUS POINTS AND FOR 15 INCH BANNER 15 BONUS POINTS).

THESE ARE ALL THE MISSIONS.

One more point why we chose EDGE-540 as our design as this design has additional points in competition. These are all the things which produce extra points for me and my team and key to success in winning this competition.

Now point comes HOWW???? Please help. If you want more information. I will definitely provide but I don't think so I've left anything.

 

[Tiger]

Just found this forum after 1 month of hardwork. Hope I'm at right place.

 

[sailr]

You have chosen an advanced aerobatic aircraft. Who in your group has experience flying radio controlled models? This is NOT a beginner airplane. You don't specify if you have a choice of electric, gas, or nitro power.

You have a very daunting task ahead of you. WHERE are you located? By your english I would guess outside the united states? Is there a model flying club near you? That would be the best place for you to start by talking to their members and letting them help you.

Good luck!

 

[dave peers]

Hi,
I am Tiger, currently doing my bachelors in mechanical engineering. I want assistance please help me honourable and respectable professionals of this field thanks. Me and my team are participating in competition in which we have to make a aircraft and we have chosed EDGE-540 as our design, all the details are described in last paragraph.
But the problem is we are totally new to this field and building rc plane first time and don't have idea as how to make its frame, how to chose parts, how to chose engine, how to automate it using arduino for manuevers and other things.

Now I'm telling the details of plane and our mission one by one.

1- Sorry I don't know the size but I know how much weight limit our university allowed us its 3.5 kg max. I don't know what size plane comes in this category this is my first problem.

2- It must be engine powered. You guide me which engine is good for the plane weights 3.5 kg.

3- It must be made from wood, may be the wood used for planes is BALSA??

4- They instructed us to first design the whole thing on ant CAD software then procede for its fabrication. But the point is HOW?? we don't know what is the shape of EDGE -540 ribs and whole body. What dimensions are for each rib so we can design it with the same dimensions on CAD software which will give us 3.5 kg wood made engine powered EDGE-540.

Now towards our missions, we have FOUR missions in this competition.

1- To do these manuevers through your plane, BARREL ROLL, VERTICAL LOOP, HAMMER HEAD all three in 4 mins and max. score is 70 POINTS for all three maneuvers. (FIRST STEP WHERE WE HAVE TO OBTAIN ALL POINTS TO WIN)

2- Second mission is performed with external payloads. In payload flight, the aircraft will take-off and first fly two different laps. one lap means that in one lap plane must complete 360 degree turn on one side RIGHT and in other lap it take 360 degree turn to the LEFT. Plane must be capable of carrying 2 payloads each of 156 gm carried externally. And drops the payload on target with servo drop mechanism.
And finally perform Immelmann turn followed by barrel roll. FOR ALL THESE WE HAVE 4.5 mins with 50 POINTS MAX. ( second opportunity for gaining points and WIN)

3- Third mission is OPTIONAL, to automate your plane by using microcontroller arduino for aircraft maneuvers like vertical loop, barrel roll. ( THIS MISSION HAS BONUS POINTS WHICH ARE 35 ) (THIS MUST BE ONE OF THE KEY TO OUR VICTORY TO GAIN THESE BONUS POINTS)

4- The fourth and final mission which is also OPTIONAL BUT ANOTHER KEY TO GAIN VICTORY BECAUSE OF BONUS POINTS is BANNER TOWING, your aircraft must be able to tow two banners one of 30 inches and other of 15 inches. ( FOR 30 INCH 35 BONUS POINTS AND FOR 15 INCH BANNER 15 BONUS POINTS).

THESE ARE ALL THE MISSIONS.

One more point why we chose EDGE-540 as our design as this design has additional points in competition. These are all the things which produce extra points for me and my team and key to success in winning this competition.

Now point comes HOWW???? Please help. If you want more information. I will definitely provide but I don't think so I've left anything.

Boy have you guys made a BAD choice of plane !!!
this machine is not designed for stable flight peramaters, it is inherantly UNSTABLE by design, for the best aerobatic performance aligned
with an extremely light strong construction AND oversized power plant to give awesome aerobatics.
Might i sugest something that you look at a cessna 152 high wing as an example boring yes
load carrying yes
but if you look to the cessna aerobat very simular aircraft but in the right hands absolutely nuts performance

as stated by others, If there are any model flying groups near to you pay them a visit speak to other pilots SMILE look at there aircraft
and dont go to the hot dog pilots you will see the difference in the models - above all smile.
This is just my humble opinion how ever that said *YOU WILL REQUIRE A GOOD PILOT TO TEST THE AIRFRAME*
As a UAV designer/operator in the dark ages *have your pilot take off and land WITH a programe over ride switch on the controls in the event of a failure of the system programing or a bad line of code * donr ask how i know this but school boy errors occure.
having looked at your schedule of requirements there are simple things that you can do to exeed the flight envelop of your design
for the aerobatic side of things WITH NO LOAD carried simply move the CENTER OF GRAVITY by SMALL amounts to the rear of the design and fly it GENTLY to test its stability this will increase its sensativity the move you move the CofG to the rear

 

[Xpress]

Hi Tiger,

To start, you are posting a minefield of questions with NO definitive answers that anybody is going to be able to give you. As an industry professional with 20+ years of hobby experience, I can tell you without a doubt in my mind that if this is the path you are going to drive down, you and your team will fail. I can give you a guiding hand and orient you in the direction in which you must go in order to find success, but that is about the most we will be able to help you with.

The vast majority of hobby grade model aircraft (including the Edge 540 design) are engineered and produced primarily in China with a huge huge mask of secrecy behind their CAD models, with heavy input from extremely well established pilots that know how a model aircraft should behave in the air. Very few people on this forum know what it takes to scratchbuild an airplane from the ground up, let alone a good flying model. Starting out from green with this specific model is not going to net you results you want as so much plays into the aircraft physical dimensions, airfoils, component layout, weight, etc. etc. Now to answer your questions in order:

1. 3-5kg weight airplanes can be anywhere from 50" wingspan to 100" wingspan, it really just depends on the type of model and its intended purpose, and all are capable of your mission parameters.

2. Again, so much plays into this in order for you to know what size motor you need. You can expect an airplane of this size to fly on anything from 100w to 1500w of electric power, or a nitro-methane engine of 0.40 to 1.20ci displacement, or a gasoline engine of 10cc to 35cc. We can't tell you, this you must determine yourself.

3. Typical construction of models this day in age is plywood for the primary structure of the aircraft with lightweight balsa sheeting to create a hard skin over key areas. Then you cover the model with a specialized covering material that is applied with an iron to give its 'livery' and create an aerodynamic structure capable of sustaining lift and reducing drag.

4. CAD is how all model aircraft are designed. You will be way in over your head with an Edge 540. I would recommend looking into designing a high wing model with dihedral wings for stability and a semi-symmetrical airfoil to provide good lift. Look into the "ugly stick' design (it's been around since the 70's) as it's a highly capable and VERY well proven aircraft design capable of meeting all your challenges with minimal engineering requirements for success.

The challenges of getting a computer like the arduino to control aspects of the flight are possible, it's just that there are SO many variables to achieve successful flight, and the arduino will not be capable of doing all of this on its own. You will need to employ the use of an accelerometer and other sensors such as a visual sensor, airspeed sensor, variometer (altitude) and possibly even a gyro to assist the arduino in making intelligent flight decisions.

And keep in mind all of this falls under the FAA's strict rules if you are in the USA, even for educational purposes. Regardless, a highly experienced and trained pilot is something I strongly urge you to employ in order to achieve success, otherwise you'll more than likely end up wrecked before you get off the ground.

 

[Tiger]

Thanks sir, I'm not in US, we have allotted a professional pilots which have a proper license from our government civil aviation but only for flying days they will not help us in making first thing. You gave me very good advice of making UGLY STICK but we are not allowed to make this shape as it is made by 40 teams previously and they thought students might copy paste the previous designs and every year students are making the same designs. They strictly told us not to make any traditional design which has rectangular wings and fuselage otherwise the team has to face with penalty of 40-50 points. The society which is organizing this is IMechE (Institution of Mechanical Engineers). For your confirmation sir I'm attaching our guide also. So this is the reason why I chose this design If you recommend us any other design along with its making I surely jump on that I respect your advice.

 

[pawnshopmike]

@Tiger

Here’s a 60” Edge that weighs well under 3.5 kg. It shows a whole list of recommended components. Follow their advice will be a good start.

https://extremeflightrc.com/60-Edge-540T-EXP-RedWhiteBlue_p_374.html

 

[Xpress]

Thanks sir, I'm not in US, we have allotted a professional pilots which have a proper license from our government civil aviation but only for flying days they will not help us in making first thing. You gave me very good advice of making UGLY STICK but we are not allowed to make this shape as it is made by 40 teams previously and they thought students might copy paste the previous designs and every year students are making the same designs. They strictly told us not to make any traditional design which has rectangular wings and fuselage otherwise the team has to face with penalty of 40-50 points. The society which is organizing this is IMechE (Institution of Mechanical Engineers). For your confirmation sir I'm attaching our guide also. So this is the reason why I chose this design If you recommend us any other design along with its making I surely jump on that I respect your advice.

Why don't you reverse engineer some of the military UAV's out there? The Heron TP UAV is a design that can easily be replicated and individually stylized to suite your needs. That will basically give you a TON of options for payload capability if you use a large wingspan and big fuselage, and will give you stability in the air with capability for basic aerobatics. Again, we are not going to be able to assist you overly much in how you execute, all we can do is orient you in the correct direction and wish you success in your endeavors.

 

[Snoopy1]

After taking the time to read your brief it very clear that your prof’s want a design that is done by the team and need to provide all the process calculations and the stress strain analysis of the structure and FEA of the wing. If I may recommend on GSN is build thread of a 20cc Glitter plane it fits all the parameters of the scope except that the fuselage is flat. Keep the vertical out line and make it 4 to five inch wide, and go from there. Note it is a proven design fits all the specifications including the 3500 gram limit. Note engine size should be reduced to 10 to 15cc Max.

 

[Swampflier]

Following the commentof Snoopy, i think you should look for a more stable platform that fits the parameters.
I would suggest the Cloud dancer 120, it's stable and nice to fly while making all the loops and rolls you need.