GAB Step 4

Description

 For STEM Senior presentations night we prepared two visual posters for our table set up. One of the posters displayed the goal and our progress of our fire detecting drone. The other poster explained an experiment that we did to test out the carrying capacity of our first drone. The first drone was extremely small, light weight, and flimsy so we did separate trials with different amounts of weight. This experiment proved that we needed a bigger and stronger drone with more powerful motors so that it could hold the added weight of the thermal camera. 

     We prepared for our presentation night by improving on our setup from the last presentation. We displayed the two posters, had our new and improved drone with the thermal camera and extra propellers on the table, placed an iPhone on the table showing the thermal camera imaging, and had the iPad and controller on to show the different controls. All of this attention to detail brought our project to life and allowed the people watching our presentation and coming by our table to understand what our project was all about. 

Evidence of Work

After we were generously donated the 3DR Solo Quadcopter with a 3-axis gimbal, our idea finally started to come to life. At the beginning of the project, we used part of our original budget to buy a small, lightweight drone. While it wasn’t as advanced, it helped us understand how drones work and allowed us to learn the basics. To purchase the FLIR One Edge Thermal Camera, each of us pitched in our own money. We made the decision as a team, showing how committed we were to improving the drone and pushing the project forward. This moment really showed how much our collaboration had grown. We've also been communicating more outside of school, which has helped us stay connected and on track.

That said, I believe there’s still room for improvement in our communication. Even though it's better than before, I often find myself working alone on things like slideshows or group tasks. I’ve asked others to help, but it hasn’t always worked out as I hoped. Long-term group projects like this one really depend on strong teamwork and consistent effort from everyone.

On the bright side, our group’s critical thinking has been excellent. When we face problems while trying to operate the new drone and thermal camera, we always find creative solutions. We had trouble leveling and calibrating the drone for flight, but we reached out to our mentor—the one who donated it—and he helped us through the process. One time, I was joking around while the drone wouldn’t calibrate and realized that flipping it upside down actually worked! Little discoveries like that have made this a fun and valuable learning experience for all of us.