Students in the Upper School’s introduction to engineering class are constructing, calibrating and operating quadcopter drones this month, thanks to the generosity of a PTF grant.

 

The two classes, taught by Steve Harless, are splitting up into groups of three or four to tackle the complex assembly of the drones, which will take about two weeks to complete. Once they are constructed, another week will be spent calibrating the devices to prepare them for flight. After spending time learning how to fly the quadcopters, they will be put to the test in February.

 

“The students need to be methodical, assembling the quadcopters slowly, step by step. If you make a mistake, you have to go back and take it apart,” Mr. Harless said. “The engineering discipline requires patience and following directions carefully, and that’s one thing I hope they learn in this unit. The goal isn’t to be the first to get it done.”

 

The quadcopter is one of the most complex units in the project-based class to date, and it comes after students wrapped up the previous semester building a BASIC Stamp 2 airboat from scratch. The lessons learned building the airboats, which were highlighted on Parralax’s Twitter feed, have come in handy during the quadcopter construction.

 

Once the quadcopters are ready to fly, the classes will meet in Pasternack Field House, where netting will be hung on the ceilings and walls to create a safe area for flying (they are not allowed to be flown outside without first registering it through the Federal Aviation Administration). The Parallax Elev-8 quadcopters come with a starter kit that includes a “crash pack” with spare parts that are most commonly needed after the inevitable crashes as students learn to operate them.

 

“They are challenging to fly,” Mr. Harless said. “There’s yaw, pitch, roll, uplift and downfall. We will spend a week learning how to operate it.”

 

The quadcopters were purchased through a generous grant from the PTF, and serves as a way to build mechanical and electrical skills with a team while constructing a product that is rapidly becoming mainstream. It aligns with the course’s objective of engaging students through activities-based, project-based and problem-based learning using 21^st century technologies.