Conquering flight: Caligula (Part 7)

Santino G.

Poor safety protocols caused the demise of Tiberius. Nothing else. Therefore, when building its successor, I didn’t deviate very far from the original design: It still had the Aeroscout motor, streamlined rudder, and ample surface allocated to the flaps. This blog briefly describes the construction process I followed when building my third 3-channel RC plane, Caligula. If more detail about the build is desired, my previous blog elaborates on the process for Tiberius. Starting with the fuselage, I cut foam board into the shape of a square prism and reinforced the inside with packaging tape. To extend its length, I … Continue reading Conquering flight: Caligula (Part 7)

Conquering flight: The ‘flight’ of Tiberius (Part 6)

Santino G.

Despite having slept only 5 hours the previous night, my mind was incredibly alert. Indeed, the anticipation of flying Tiberius inspired a certain tenacity in my actions that day. Just one week prior, on August 3, I had attempted to rebuke gravity with the maiden flight of my first RC plane, Augustus. Unfortunately, due to both a poor CG and an excessive weight with no commensurate thrust, the warping of spacetime would return my dismissal, leaving Augustus in pieces. Today, however, would be different. Applying my newly-developed engineering habit of iterative problem-solving, I learned everything I could from Augustus’ flights … Continue reading Conquering flight: The ‘flight’ of Tiberius (Part 6)

Conquering flight: Tiberius (Part 5)

Santino G.

Building and testing Augustus taught me many hard lessons, including the importance of the center of gravity’s position, the proper design of a rudder, the consequence of excessive weight, and to name a few. Implementing what I had learned, I set upon constructing another 3-channel RC plane, Tiberius. Lighter, longer and sleeker, its future was promising. This short blog describes the construction process and design decisions I made. For the fuselage, I wanted to avoid the squished square design Augustus had, so while defining each side, I cut lines down the foam board that constitutes the fuselage but made both … Continue reading Conquering flight: Tiberius (Part 5)

Conquering flight: The ‘flight’ of Augustus (Part 4)

Santino G.

Weeks of hard labor have culminated to this moment, I reminded myself. The registration process was frustrating (you can expect a blog on it), but the plane finally earned its numbered sticker. At 9 a.m., my father and I drove to the AMA-certified RC field. It was a cool morning, if memory serves, and was the day Augustus would take its first steps into the air and the pages of history. The notion that this plane was perfectly constructed would be wrong. With a fuselage shaped into a lopsided square prism and the center of gravity out of wack from … Continue reading Conquering flight: The ‘flight’ of Augustus (Part 4)

Conquering flight: Augustus (Part 3)

Santino G.

With the proof of concept finished, the 3-channel RC plane could then be tackled. I meticulously studied successful designs, learned of all the possible wing configurations, and practiced flying on a simulator. Construction commenced. The materials I used were foam board and hot glue; the electronics were a transmitter and receiver, a motor, ESC, and servos. I should clarify, however, that this blog is not a direct tutorial; it simply describes the general process I followed. The first part of construction was the fuselage. For this, I took my foam board and cut in straight lines so that it could … Continue reading Conquering flight: Augustus (Part 3)

The complexity of calculus is only superficial

Santino G.

Calculus provided relief from the two-thousand-year decline in mathematics that proceeded the death of Archimedes. With its tools to analyze motion, change, and infinite series, calculus was a novel interpretation of reality and, to many, impossible to understand. Probably more often than not, students have gone into studying this subject with rumors of its difficulty floating in their mind, and, accordingly, they find it intractable. After years of calculus study, however, I find this widespread impression to be false. I cannot generalize my claim over the entirety of calculus just yet, considering I am still only on Calc II, but … Continue reading The complexity of calculus is only superficial

Conquering flight: Basic aerodynamics (Part 2)

Santino G.

In building a 3-channel RC plane, I found it was necessary to learn the basics of aerodynamics. Not for constructing the plane itself, but to make sense of why I keep crashing it. This blog will document everything I learned in this regime of knowledge. (Courtesy Pilot Institute) There are four main forces that act on a plane (RC or otherwise). These are thrust, drag, lift, and weight. Thrust is the forward force produced by the motor and propeller. Lift is the upward force generated by the wings. Weight is the downward force due to gravity. Drag is the force … Continue reading Conquering flight: Basic aerodynamics (Part 2)

How I charge my LiPo batteries

Santino G.

Lithium polymer (LiPo) batteries, with their high energy density and affordable price, have risen to prominence among RC hobbyists. Effectively dethroning nickel-metal hydride, LiPo batteries enable RC vehicles to be lighter and run longer. However, as with all engineering advancements, certain trade-offs had to be made in the R&D phase. LiPo batteries can, if not handled properly, explode. This doesn’t happen often, but the very fact that it can should be a warning to every hobbyist. Do your research! One of the most common ways a LiPo battery can combust is by charging it incorrectly. It is therefore necessary that … Continue reading How I charge my LiPo batteries

Conquering flight: Proof of concept (Part 1)

Santino G.

In order to intuit new concepts, one must first remove the abstraction it is automatically plagued with. For me, the concepts are aerodynamics and electronics, and the way I have chosen to parse them is the radio-control hobby. This series will record the steps I took to make a 3-channel RC plane. Exposition of RC planes For the reader who may be uninformed in this hobby, the following paragraphs will provide the necessary details. An RC plane, or radio-controlled plane, is basically a toy. You have a remote, called a transmitter, that you use to control the plane’s speed and … Continue reading Conquering flight: Proof of concept (Part 1)

Sticky post

Introduction

Santino G.

print(“Hello, world!”) I am a high school student who is passionate about engineering, math, coding (hence the “Hello, world!” reference), space, and more topics than I have time to study. The goals of this blog are the following: catalog all my projects in one place, develop the skill of communicating complex topics in simple terms, find gaps in my understanding of subjects, and use this blog as a forcing function for swift project completion. If you have found this blog, you are probably a college that is interested in my portfolio. Hopefully, you enjoy it. I will attempt to maintain … Continue reading Introduction