Initial Project Planning

1. Project Description and Merits

The project is to build a program that will allow a drone to navigate by itself by detecting obstacles or following a set of instructions or signals, such as colored lines. This project will advance STEM because it allows for further advancements in drones and can lead to autonomous drone tracking and it will allow the drone to think and make decisions, as well as corrections, itself. This can decrease drone accidents and make the controller’s lives easier, and will be more precise and is faster than a human input. Not just that, since the drone will be operating in an indoor environment, it will be essential for the drone to be able to "sense" or "map" the environment around itself. This could help our worldwide community in many ways, provide possible methods of deliveries into warehouses/factories/offices, rescue, and just overall, evaluating the environment around itself, especially if it is dangerous.

2. Group/Team Communication

The only members of our group are me and Ayoush. We may need to work with group 2 (Jacob, Alan, and Ryan) because they are also working with drones, and coding as well. We will communicate with each other via Facebook Messenger, Hangouts, and other methods.

3. Prior Work/Resource Inventory

• Node.js - Node.js is a programming language that is essential for the coding of our drone. It will allow us to give the drone commands, control the drone, etc.
• AR.Flight 2.4.10 - This app will allow us to experiment with the drone, especially its movements. Understanding the movements of the drone will be essential to how we code commands for the drone. 
• Robot Operating System (ROS) - This website will provide us powerful programming tools that could help us program our drone. 
• Line following code - This database will allow us to analyze the code used by the group from last year, and make improvements in the code, to make the drone operate with a better performance and efficiency. 
• How to use Git and GitHub - We must learn how to use GitHub if we are to make improvements and corrections to our code and store our files safely for further use at home or school. 
• There are many other tools that we can use in our Project Resource page, and more will later be specified. 

4. Technology Analysis

We need coding and engineering. We need coding in order to code the drone to follow lines and other commands, and we also need to write a script for the drone to follow. We also need to program the drone to interpret the data. We need engineering in case something goes wrong or we need to fix something physically. We will also need to be able to navigate the drone, and as a result, we will need to use the camera of the drone to help with navigation. Since our main objective is to make the drone follow a colored line, it is essential that we use the camera, and develop code for image processing. This will allow the drone to process images and then follow the colored line. The drone should also be able to dodge obstacles or redirect its route based on the objects it sees ahead, or on its way. As a result, a code will be necessary for the drone to recognize a 3D entity, the object, and then redirect a route around it. As a result, there is still much we need to do, and many tasks ahead of us.

Examples of the technology we need are...

- Javascript

- Node.js module

- Felixge’s AR Drone module

- An IDE, one that can run programs too

5. Competence

Again, the skill sets that we need are coding and engineering for the same reasons. We also need to be patient and accept failure and are persistent. We also need to be precise and run many trials.

Skill Sets: 

- advanced knowledge of Microsoft Word, and Powerpoint

- knowledge of Microsoft Excel (possible to become better through practice)

- knowledge of commands and modules in node.js

- advanced knowledge of computer

- basic skill in controlling drone through applications

More skills will be added over time. 

6. Safety

Safety is not a concern, however there are possible safety issues such as:

- getting cut by the drone blades.

- getting hit by the drone

- the drone hitting a classmate, or student

To keep our fellow peers and ourselves safe, we will most likely conduct drone experiments far away from the drone but close enough for the drone to be in sight to observe any errors in the drone control. Also, we will most likely conduct these experiments in an open-enviornment like the corridors at times where students are not walking through the corridor often, such as afterschool, and in the morning. We could also possibly conduct experiments in the gym too, if empty, due to its extensive space. 

7. Equipment, Materials & Budget

We will need the FreeFlight AR Drone, a Windows Laptop, and a Mac. There should be no software costs because we will be using free, open-source software. We will need to download Node.js, Felixge’s AR Drone module, and Sublime Text 3.

8. Schedule

Our goals for next week is to continue experimenting with the code and trying different actions, like flips, rotating, revolving, etc. We will investigate deeper and look at last year’s code and blogs to see what trouble we may run into and how to resolve them. We will do more research and maybe try to do something with the sensors.