The workshop was organized by the UAV Club, Dept. of Aeronautical Engineering, and conducted by Aerotrix, Skyfi Education Labs, Pvt. Ltd, Bangalore.The workshop was scheduled and got approved from the concerned authorities to be conducted on 23rd and 24th of April 2018 at Smt. Rajalakshmi Jayaraman Seminar Hall. The module for the workshop was ‘RC Aircraft’, which would teach and provide a hands on training for the students to design, fabricate and test a model radio controlled fixed wing aircraft.
The registration fee for the participants was fixed as Rs. 1400 per head as mentioned in the workshop proposal from the company, Aerotrix, Skyfi Education Labs Pvt. Ltd, Bangalore. The fee for the said module was Rs. 7000 for a team of 5 members.
The registration for the event was closed on 19th of April 2018, and in total 35 students paid the registration fee and registered themselves for the workshop. Among them 15 were 2nd semester (AE), 11 were 4th semester (AE), 2 were 6th semester (AE) and 2 mechanical engineering students, from 6th semester. One of the registered student from 6th semester AE could not attend the workshop due to some personal reasons
The inauguration ceremony for the event was scheduled at 09: 15 AM, but the trainers from Aerotrix reached MVJCE campus late at around 10:00 AM, due to the traffic on the route. Hence the inauguration ceremony started at 10:10 AM. The inaugural function was presided by Prof. S. C. Gupta, HoD, Aeronautical Engineering and Mr. Ronak Giri, Engineer, Aerotrix, Skyfi Education Labs, Pvt. Ltd. The workshop was officially started with lighting the lamp, by Prof. S. C. Gupta and Mr. Ronak Giri followed by the briefing about the workshop, by the chief coordinator, Mr. Akhil A. Chandran, AP/ AE. Later Mr. Ronak Giri, briefed about the procedures to be followed and the structure of the workshop as well as the benefits for the participants. By this the inaugural function completed and the workshop session 1 started at 10: 20 AM.
The session 1 of the workshop started at 10: 20 AM and went on till 12:40 PM. Mr. Ronak Giri, given a very effective and interactive presentation on the theory behind RC Aircraft design. He covered the topics such as airfoil selection, basic aerodynamics, different configurations of wing in an RC Aircraft and other relevant topics. Also he has instructed the students on how to register themselves for obtaining the online certificate from Ksyfi Education Labs. The session ended for lunch at 12:40 PM. The session 2 of day 1 started at 01:30 PM, after the lunch break, where the trainersMr. Ronak Giri and Mr. Baskaran distributed the materials and necessary tools for the fabrication. For this session seven teams were made among the participants, 4 – 6 members each, according the students’ choice. And each team were assigned with a table to work on their craft. The session started with the hand calculation of different design parameters required for the fabrication of the aircraft. As per the instruction provided by Mr. Ronak Giri and Mr. Basakaran students have completed the required calculation/ estimation, of the parameters such as the wing loading, airfoil selection, dimensions of the wing, fuselage and tail section of the aircraft. After the required estimation of the different design parameters the students started fabrication of the aircraft. They have started off with making the wing. First they have made a template of the airfoil of choice in a paper and attached it on either side of the high density foam piece provided. Using the hot wire cuter, stationed at one side of the venue, each team started cutting out their wing section using the tool. Later they made the fuselage section using the chloroplast, corrugated plastic sheets provided to them in the estimated dimensions. The session 2 of day 1 got extended till 4:45 PM.
The day 2 session 1 started at 08:30 AM, the teams have the fabrication of the wing, fuselage and tail sections. Later they have assembled the different sections together to make the whole aircraft, making use of hot glue gun provided at one corner of the venue. The last quarter of the session was devoted to fix the necessary electronics and other components to the aircraft made by the students. Electronics such as brushless DC motor, ESC (Electronic speed controller), servo motors, and components such as connecting rods, control horns and other necessary connections. The session concluded at 12:40 PM and dispersed for lunch. Session 2 of day 2 was started at 01: 30 PM and the venue was the college football ground. Where the throttle level of the motors and the control response of the servo motors were checked before flight of each model and in a sequential order each model of all seven teams were flight tested by the flyer/ instructor Mr. Baskaran. All the models fabricated by the students shown good flight characteristics during testing. Out of the 7 models made on the workshop, 3 got crash landed due to loss of communication signal, which were flying beyond the tree line at the farthest side of the ground, rest of the models landed safely.. The flying session of the models continued till 04:45 PM. The session was attended by the HoD and faculties from Aeronautical Engineering Dept.
Later by 04:50 PM, the participants and the instructors assembled at Smt. Rajalakshmi Jayaraman Seminar Hall for the valedictory function. Feedback from the students has been taken by the coordinator and delivered vote of thanks.
