Drone Components
In this chapter, you will learn about the essential drone
components.
Credit Picture to:Drone Technology Planet. No copyright infringement is
intended. Note: working on credits for picture in this module.
Next: Propeller & Motor
Battery & PDB
Distribute the power!
Battery
Battery is the power source for our drone. Without the battery, our drone would not be able
to
fly. Battery is considered one of the heaviest components of our drone. Usually, drone use
LiPo
or Lithium polymer battery because they have a high energy density compared to their size
and
weight.
Power Distribution Board (PDB)
PDB is a
printed
circuit
board that distributes power from the battery to all the components at an appropriate
voltage.
Next: ESC & Flight Controller
ESC & Flight Controller
Work together to control the motors' speed.
ESC - Electronic Speed Controller
ESC is an electronic circuit which enables flight controller to monitor and change the
speed
of
drone's motors during the flight. The flight controller will send a signal to ESC. ESC
will
then
translate the desired speed to the motor by converting DC battery power to AC power at lower
or
higher voltage to the motor as needed.
Flight Controller
The flight
controller is
a circuit
board that collects data through a set of sensors, and then use those collected data to
calculate the speed each motor needs in order to follow the drone pilot's command. Flight
controllers
will then send this speed information to ESC, so that ESC could pass along this information
to
the motor. We can think of the flight controller as the brain of the drone.
Next: Transmitter & Receiver
Transmitter & Receiver
The same photo is used for both components because it is a photos of transceiver, which combine transmitter and receiver into one !
Transmitter
Transmitter is responsible for transmitting the radio signal from the controller to the
drone.
In simpler term, the transmitter will read your joystick inputs and send those inputs to
the
receiver.
Receiver
The receiver is responsible for
receiving the
radio signal that has been sent from the transmitter. The transmitter and receiver should
use
the same radio signal. Once the signal is received, the receiver will send this information
to
the drone flight controller.
Next: GPS & Frame
GPS & Frame
Last slide!
GPS
GPS helps the drone to determine its relative position and speed. GPS also enables many
useful
drone function, such as Altitude Hold, which enables the drone to stay at the same altitude
during the flight, and Return to Home, which enables the drone to return to its take off
position.
Frame
Frame is the main structure of our
drone. All of
the components discussed in this module are attached to the frame. The size of your frame
will effect the
size
of your propellers and motors.
You finished the modules!