How to Send Your Robot to Space

[jester8605]

I'd assume the camera didn't overheat due to lack of air.. you could hear the air rushing past as it descended. I'd assume it overheated due to the friction of re-entry.

[palmisano]

@jester8605 It was definitely overheating. Back on Earth we put the camera in a well insulated box and let it sit there running as an experiment. It still experienced a thermal shutdown. Also, the re-entry is actually the coldest part of the flight.

[bigcasey1995]

@palmisano What happens if you hit a plane? I live near an air port and kinda afraid of hitting plane.

[palmisano]

@bigcasey1995 You can't launch near airport airspace - it's against the law. You'll have to drive somewhere else. There is a list of laws you must follow to do this, and you can find it all online.

[DutchDukeMan]

2:17 for the video

[3mustardMoNkEyS]

So how far away did it land from takeoff?

[palmisano]

@3mustardMoNkEyS I don't really remember, but I think it was like 80 miles.

[eddiequest4]

FANTABULOUS ! I was mesmerized when it rose above the wind. But I wonder if there might be a lighter method of stabilizing the camera.

[thesa1nt01]

Very 2001. Creepy when the balloon breaks.

[mhoyer01]

Maybe add a couple of gyros to stabilize the camera. Very cool project. Do you need FAA clearance to launch weather balloons?

[palmisano]

@mhoyer01 Gryos add weight meaning we don't go as high . . . always tradeoffs . . . we recorded at 50fps, so I could just slow down the video by 30% if I want. You don't need FAA clearance if you follow all the highly limiting regulations, which is what we did. Just google around for it.

[ZmajevoJaje]

Thanks for sharing this awesome achievement with the rest of us! :)

[robertlam18]

But it is kind of dangerous if it drop onto somebody.

[palmisano]

@robertlam18 Not really, it has a parachute. We plan it to land in farm fields. This one landed on a power line out in the middle of no where, right on the side of a small road.

[robertlam18]

Why they charge so much for a balloon ?

[palmisano]

@robertlam18 If you get many people to join you, you can split the costs.

[savagecircuits]

Wish we could see the rest of the drop. Nice though!

[compaq1275]

Cool Video! Did you send an Axon? : ) If I wanted to send my robot to space, how much does a weather balloon cost? Anyway, I suggest next time you send a robot to space that you add some fins or something that might stop the spinning... once it got to space though, it looked really pretty. Thanks for sharing that.

[palmisano]

@compaq1275 We spent about $800 on balloon + helium . . . not counting gas to drive hundreds of miles . . . the higher you go, the more it'll cost ya. =P

[Roymond911]

@palmisano wait 800 with the sensors or just the latex balloon and helium

[palmisano]

@Roymond911 $800 just the balloon and helium. The other stuff went into the thousands, although you usually get all that back if nothing bad happens. If it lands in a backyard swimming pool and you didn't put floats on it . . . well thats that =P

[zsxwrsd]

@palmisano its only around 60 for an 8lb. lift balloon and 130 for a large tank of hellium here in ma, itll cost 4000 in fishing line if you want it to have a string on it

[palmisano]

@zsxwrsd Where'd you buy the balloon at so cheap?

[zsxwrsd]

@palmisano online at a site called balloonsdirect

[RoboticEngineering]

Congrats on the success! Where you able to communicate with the dronecell the whole time?

[palmisano]

@RoboticEngineering Nope . . . my mcu had a permanent software failure early in launch =(

[J5Eng]

Absolutely amazing