GOLDAIR / SPY IN THE SKY DESIGN PROJECT PROPOSAL

Transcription

1 GOLDAIR / SPY IN THE SKY DESIGN PROJECT PROPOSAL OVERVIEW The GoldAir / Spy in the Sky group proposes the following: The group will purchase commercial and semi-commercial products, that when combined will provide the same functionality as the original Gold Air and Spy in the Sky group design, only the tal cost will be just over $400. The concept is still very close the original design in that there is a USB hub linking gether multiple sensors on the blimp. The onblimp sensors will include a PC webcam provide a live video stream and a GPS locar provide the blimp s location. The sensors will simply plug in the USB hub, which is an AnywhereUSB model that converts the USB data in IP. The IP data is then passed through a commercial IEEE b wireless access point and then transmitted an b network interface. The data is instantly accessible across the network, making the project truly network-centric. A block diagram of the design can be seen in appendix A at the end of this proposal. DESIGN ANALYSIS Initially the weight of all components on the blimp was our biggest concern. Since the big blimp can only hold ounces, we had ensure that the combined weight of all parts was not o much for the blimp fly. This required some estimation on our part because weight specifications for each part included the casing around the electronics. Our plan is strip off the casing of each part lighten the load. After adding up all component weights, our intended design will weigh imately 20 ounces. This is within the limitations of two blimps tied gether. We also were concerned with powering all devices on the blimp. The combined maximum amperage for all parts is imately 2.2 A. The group had make sure we could find a lightweight battery capable of putting out this much power. By researching a few different alternatives, we were able find a battery from Ultralife that was capable of handling our needs. By connecting 2 polymer rechargeable batteries in series, we can provide the necessary current and voltage the on-blimp system. The simple plug and play approach on the airborne blimp creates more development for our team at the computer base station, specifically accessing the sensor data stream and interpreting it in one GUI. Since everything on the blimp is a commercial product, we would not know what format expect for the received data stream. We would essentially have do black box testing reverse engineer the data stream and access the raw sensor data. This would be extremely difficult do with the large amount of data being received from the temperature, GPS, and video sensors. Therefore, we decided explore other possible alternatives.

2 After analyzing several options, our group came a decision that will prove be more cost effective and more realistic achieving our goals. By eliminating the temperature sensor, we can cut down on cost, weight, and required power for the on-blimp system. Removing this sensor doesn t cut back on our project objectives either our main goal is transmit sensor data that previous design groups have not had success with, such as video and GPS. For the GPS sensor, we can save money by using the already available GPS receiver from Garmin. Although this sensor has a serial interface, it can still be connected our USB hub through a serial USB converter available from BenCole Int. The datasheet from Garmin also contains information on how access the GPS data from the serial port data stream. This will allow us display the GPS coordinates in our own GUI. To easily display the video in the same GUI, a change was made in the GUI s development platform. By using a Windows USB webcam and developing our GUI in VisualBasic, we can access the video stream through an ActiveX control available from JPC Software. The control allows users view and capture images from a PC webcam with a single line of code. The ease of implementation in this approach will definitely outweigh the previous cost of GUI development. CONCLUSION Although this approach of simple plug and play connectivity initially seems all o simple for a senior design project, it does accomplish many goals. Most importantly, it gets the job done and that is what counts. Our approach focuses on the IEEE b wireless networking standard. With any extra time, group members will become more familiar with the procol and be able work on future grass roots implementations for the next generation of EE582 students. Similarly, our project deals primarily with USB so group members can focus on the overall USB procol and work with Mr. Dutta implement USB as a standard for future designs. The benefit of our work future classes is our main focus, not just getting the design work as a one-off project. We all agree that with a little more structure and easy access, understandable references, future EE582/682 project experiences will further be enriched. We can provide the references and suggest methods of structure, but our goal of a wireless sensor platform will be realized first.

3 APPENDIX A Block Diagram

4 APPENDIX B Bill of Materials Item Part # Vendor Description Unit Price Qty Total Cost 1 GPS 25 LVS Garmin Serial USB Receiver (in lab) n/a 1 n/a 2 GPS GA27 Garmin GPS Antenna (in lab) n/a 1 n/a Inside Out Networks Remote USB Over IP Concentrar $ $ WAP11 Linksys Wireless Access Point $ $ PHWL11-USB Phoebe (local) USB b Adapter $ $ IC50C Micro Innovations USB webcam $ $ UCC283-5 TI 5V Regular $ $ UBC Ultralife Polymer Prismatic Battery $ $ Webcam OCX 1.0 JPC Software Visual Basic Active X Control for Microsoft Video $ $ BenCole Int USB Serial Converter $ $50.00 Note: prices do not include shipping costs. Total $593.93

5 APPENDIX C Part Specifications Operating Voltage (V) Max Current Size (in x in x in) Weight (oz.) Part # Vendor Description Serial USB Receiver GPS 25 LVS Garmin (in lab) 3.6-6V 120mA, note1 0.5x0.5x GPS GA27 Garmin GPS Antenna (in lab) n/a n/a 2.75x2x Inside Out Networks Remote USB Over IP Concentrar amp, note5 4.35x1.03x WAP11 Linksys Wireless Access Point 5 550mA 4.6x3x0.4 5, note3 PHWL11-USB Phoebe (local) USB b Adapter note1 note1 0.5x0.5x.125 note2 IC50C Micro Innovations USB webcam note1 500mA, note1 0.5x0.5x.125 1, note3 UCC283-5 TI 5V Regular Io max = 4 (typ) 0.5x0.5x UBC Ultralife Polymer Prismatic Battery 2x 3.7V in series = 7.4V 3.5Ah /2 = 1.75Ah 4x4.2x0.17 x2 3.8 x2 = 7.6 Webcam OCX 1.0 JPC Software 8303 BenCole Int Visual Basic Active X Control for Microsoft Video n/a n/a n/a n/a USB Serial Converter note1 note1 0.5x0.5x note1: These devices operate off the USB hub's power which is capable of supplying 500mA@5V. note2: This device is located on the ground and is not applicable weight constraints. note3: These weights are overestimated. Without plastic packaging the tal weight is estimated be <17 ounces. note4: This is the imate maximum draw. note5: estimated at 2 usb devices consuming 120mA (GPS) + 500mA (estimated camera) + 1A for its own consumption.

6 APPENDIX D Timeline of Design Activities Start date: 02 / 02 / 2003 Project Assignment Key Project: EE682 = Karin = Debra = Hoon = Tom = Bill = All = Andy = Matt = Kelly = Huan = EE Dept = Chad

7 Tasks Revise proposal Current Week Weeks 02/02 02/09 02/09 02/16 02/16 02/23 02/23 03/02 03/02 03/09 03/09 03/16 Get proposal approved Purchase components Components arrive Assemble power supply Test b equipment Test USB/TCP/IP hub w/ sensors Write GUI interface Integrate b w/ USB hub Integrate GUI w/ USB sensors (not using hub) Integrate GUI w/ USB sensors (and hub) Integrate GUI w/ complete testbed Integrate power supply on testbed Write product specification Write product manual Working and Detail Drawings Test Plans Testing Final testing Maintenance Specification As-Built Plans