Tag - KDE Direct

04Sep

KDE Direct Upgrades UAV Electronic Speed Controllers

KDE Direct recently announced new features for their UAS (unmanned aerial system) UVC electronic speed controller (ESC) series and KDE Device Manager V1.32 software. Upgrades include data logging and graphing, stall protection, and motor control optimizations. The new data graphing and logging features are accessible by updating the UVC Series ESC to the latest firmware. During a flight, the UVC Series ESC records the following:
  • Drive Voltage
  • Drive Current
  • Temperature
  • Motor Drive Power
  • Input Throttle
  • Output Throttle
  • RPM
  • Power Consumption
The new KDE Device Manager is customizable and has a new assortment of graphing features to view the ESC data log. The latest update also features a variety of display options, changeable units, and printing. The data log also offers a number of other intuitive features. Users can save data logs as well as upload a data log from a previous flight. Additionally, users can change the data log speed to allow the ESC to record more data. KDE have added the ability to record multiple flights and see all use time. This allows users to keep track of flights in a way that makes the most sense to accomplish their goals. All KDE ESC’s now have the option to turn on Stall Protection. This advanced algorithm allows for the immediate shutdown of electronics during propeller impact or alternate unsafe event. Stall protection also guards the ESC from damage and detects if a propeller is blocked. A number of motor control optimizations have also been added to the KDE Device Manager. The motor control algorithm on KDE’s ESCs have been optimized specifically to particular UAS Multi-Rotor Brushless Motors. This can be accomplished by selecting which motor is being used in the KDE Device Manager, and provides greater efficiency and overall improvements on the motor control.  

Shop KDE Direct's line of ESCs, motors and propellers at Unmanned Systems Source.

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02Jan

Understanding IP Rating Standards and how they Relate to Your Drone

An Ingress Protection Rating, or IP rating, is a laboratory-certified industrial rating for a piece of electronic equipment or an enclosure for electrical equipment. The IP Rating explains the degree of protection provided against debris and water intrusion. It also measures protection against accidental contact -- including body parts like fingers or hands -- to critical components. Developed by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), this internationally recognized rating system is in wide use in Europe and Asia. North America is adopting this standard at a slower pace.  

IP Rating Standards

The standard provides consumers more detailed information than terms like  “waterproof”. The IP rating consists of two digits, each of which measure different forms of environmental influence. The first digit represents protection against intrusion of solid objects, such as dust and debris. The second digit represents protection against ingress of liquids. The higher the value of each digit, the greater the protection. Hence, the digit 0 means no protection is provided. For example, a product rated IP45 provides better protection against environmental factors than a similar product rated IP31.  

IP Ratings and Your Drone

For drones, checking the IP rating of its various parts is a good way to determine the weather tolerance of the UAV.  A sleek design and high IP rating ensure that your motors and fully enclosed components are protected against dust and rain. An IP rating is especially important if you’re looking to fly your drone in rain, near construction sites, or in any situation where weather conditions might change quickly and bring upon adverse conditions. For instance, KDE Direct's KDE-UAS125UVC  is optimized for multi-rotor and single-rotor applications and has an ingress protection rating of IP66. This rating ensures an all-weather and dust-proof operation. It provides complete protection against contact with external debris and projected water (heavy rain) and snow conditions. The current KDEXF-UASHVC ESCs, in operation worldwide, have a certified IP56 rating. This ensures cool-running temperatures and all-weather operations for use in a wide range of harsh environments and commercial/industrial applications. KDE Direct uses the highest-quality materials and manufacturing processes to provide you with multi-rotor and single-rotor motors, electronics, propellers blades, and upgrades to ensure your drone takes off and lands safely.
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21Dec

Brushed or Brushless Motor: What’s the Difference?

The biggest difference between brushed and brushless motors, unsurprisingly, is the brush. Otherwise, the principle behind the internal workings of brushed and brushless motors are much the same. As the motor windings energize, it creates a temporary magnetic field to repel or attract permanent magnets. This magnetic force is converted to shaft rotation, allowing the motor to do work. As the shaft rotates, the electric current is routed to different sets of windings. This maintains electromotive repulsion or attraction, forcing the rotor to continually rotate.  

History of Brushed and Brushless Motors

The use of brushed DC motors began in 1856. Today, electrical propulsion, cranes, paper machines and steel rolling mills all use brushed motors. One problem with brushed motors is that the brushes wear down and require frequent replacement. Brush wear became a significant drawback as application demands increased and high-electric discharge noise became an issue. Hence, a new motor was born...the brushless DC motor. Brushless DC motors use electronic speed controller devices and quickly displaced brushed motors for many applications. Advancements in solid state technology in the early 1960s resulted in the invention of the first brushless DC (BLDC) motor in 1962. T.G. Wilson and P.H. Trickey called it a “DC machine with solid state commutation.” The key element of the brushless motor is that it requires no physical commutator, making it the most popular choice for computer disk drives, robotics, and aircrafts.  

Brushless Motor Advantages

Brushless DC motors, with no brushes to wear out, represent a huge leap forward in technology. They also provide significantly higher efficiency and performance. They also offer a lower susceptibility to mechanical wear than their brushed counterparts. Brushless motors offer several other advantages, including:
  • Higher torque to weight ratio
  • Increased torque per watt of power input (increased efficiency)
  • Increased reliability and lower maintenance requirements
  • Reduced operational and mechanical noise
  • Longer lifespan (no brush and commutator erosion)
  • Elimination of ionizing sparks from the commutator (ESD)
  • Near-elimination of electromagnetic interference (EMI)

Today's Brushless Motors

Despite their reliability, the initial downside to early brushless motors was that they could not generate a great deal of power. When better permanent magnet materials became available in the 1980s, they enabled brushless motors to generate as much (or more) power as the previous brush motors on the market. In the late 80s, Robert E. Lordo built the first large-scale brushless DC motor with ten (10)  times the power of the earlier brushless motors. Today’s brushless motors solve many limitations of brushed motors by combining a higher output power, smaller size and weight, better heat dissipation and efficiency, wider operating speed ranges, and very low electrical noise operation. Brushless motors have no electrical contacts designed for wear, providing the greatest advantage in reliability and reduced maintenance intervals for commercial and industrial applications.  

KDE Direct Brushless Motors

Designed and engineered in the United States, KDE Direct’s brushless motors provide best-in-class power, performance, and efficiency. From design redundancy standards and fail-safes to payload capacity and thrust performance, KDE Direct motors are engineered for longer flight times, higher efficiency and higher payloads that push the limits of today’s technology. The KDE Direct UAS Multi-Rotor Brushless Motor Series presents high-quality and engineered motors specific for multi-rotor and UAS applications. The series was designed to provide market-leading performance and zero-vibration operation for hours of maintenance-free usage and market-leading performance. Shop KDE Direct's complete Brushless Motor Series at Unmanned Systems Source.
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20Dec

The Positive Impact of Drones Towards Wildlife Conservation Efforts

Drones and conservationAn unlikely contender in the battle for wildlife conservation has entered the ring: drones. Thanks to an ability to cover large areas at low costs, drones are playing a part in the reduction of wildlife threats. Globally, drones aid in everything from migration tracking and nest surveys to habitat management and anti-poaching activities. Drones are changing wildlife conservation around the world.  

Drones and Conservation

Since the 1970s, orangutan numbers have decreased sharply. Currently, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) lists orangutan's as critically endangered. Today, orangutans face growing threats from poaching and palm oil production across South Asia. Monitoring these animals is now more important than ever. Conserving the orangutan population effectively requires producing data that is both accurate and timely. Data includes the density, distribution, and land cover change of these animals. Collecting such data even once was time-consuming and challenging for rangers to acquire via ground surveys. Now, this task is increasingly more efficient with the aid of UAVs. Today, the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Program (SOCP) in Indonesia flies drones above the tree canopy. Drones monitor and track endangered populations by observing nests. Drones, equipped with video cameras, capture high-resolution images that are often too costly to obtain otherwise. Plus, drones can fly pre-programmed missions autonomously for up to 50 minutes and over a distance of 25 km. This helps researchers survey and map forests as well as their biodiversity.  

Catching Poachers

South Africa is home to more rhinoceros than any other country, housing 83% of Africa’s rhinos. Unfortunately, the country also experiences the highest levels of poaching, which is the primary threat to the conservation of the species. In recent years, poaching deaths increased significantly. The continent’s elephant population declined by 30% from 2007 to 2014. In 2015, poacher's killed at least 1,338 for their horns, threatening the complete extinction of elephants and rhinoceroses. Past efforts to stop poaching throughout the country have seen little success—until now. Backed by funding from the World Wildlife Fund, including $5 million from Google, teams are evaluating their ability to combat poachers. The Air Shepherd Initiative (ASI) group uses analytics to identify poaching areas. Once areas are identified via the algorithm, drones equipped with night vision are sent to track poachers. Once poachers are spotted, rangers are sent to intercept the invaders. Flying drones up to 15 miles away at night gives ASI critical advantages. The majority of poachers know that patrols are less effective after dark. Most poaching occurs at night, leaving the parks highly vulnerable once the sun sets. Night vision equipped drones are changing that disadvantage. Since the program’s launch, ASI completed over 4,000 missions across 3 countries.  

Humpback Whales in Antarctica

Traditionally, biologists and zoologists use helicopters, small planes and satellite photography to learn the migration habits of wild animals. However, these methods take a significant amount of time and resources. “Drones offer a very safe, green, and inexpensive alternative to manned aircraft,” said David Bird, professor of wildlife biology at McGill University. Significantly smaller and more affordable, drones still capture detailed photographs needed for these efforts. Also, drones can be fitted with thermal cameras and sensors for more accurate monitoring. Not only do drones utilize less resources, they’re also safer. According to Bird, small plane and helicopter crashes are leading causes of death for wildlife biologists counting animals or surveying nests. In Antarctica, marine biologists from Duke University use drones along coastlines and nearby seas to monitor the habits of humpback whales. The team hopes to learn how many whales work together to feed and if roles vary. And the advantage of observing such behavior from above via drone, versus from a boat or from ashore, are numerous.
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12Dec

Choosing the Optimal Propeller Blade

To choose the optimal drone propeller blade, the user should consider a number of factors. Drone propeller blades have a significant influence on power and affect how smoothly a drone flies. As such, flight efficiency is one of the most important considerations. It begs the question, how will new drone propeller blades improve the flight efficiency of your multi-rotor UAV? When selecting new drone propeller blades, the following factors are important considerations:  

Number & Size of Blades

The number of blades required per propeller will vary depending on the platform, usage and payload requirements. Drones for racing and acrobatics most frequently use smaller blades, under eight inches. Smaller blades are generally paired with smaller motors with high kV ratings. Larger blades, over eight inches, are paired with motors that have low kV ratings. These blades are used to carry heavier payloads, such as video equipment or spraying containers for agriculture.  

Pitch

Pitch is defined as the traveling distance per a single revolution of the propeller. The correct pitch will often depend on the specific application for a UAV platform. Lower pitch often results in more torque and less turbulence for lifting. As a result, the motors do not have to work as hard to carry heavy payloads. And, since the motors draw less current from the battery, it results in increased flight time. Propellers with higher pitches move more air but generally create more turbulence and less torque.  

Diameter

Typically, a larger diameter propeller blade allows greater contact with the air. This relates directly to flight efficiency, as a small increase or decrease in diameter can change how efficiently a drone performs. In comparison to smaller propellers, larger propellers tend to provide more stability when hovering. However, smaller propeller blades require less effort to speed up or slow down than larger ones. This makes smaller blades more responsive than larger propellers. Smaller propellers with a high pitch are better suited for fast and quick maneuvers. Larger propellers with low pitches are more appropriate for carrying heavier payloads and aerial video cameras.  

Additional considerations

  • Blade material
  • Power
  • RPM
  • Air density
  • Maximum noise
In summary, selecting the most appropriate propeller blades depends on the planned use as well as additional factors. Understanding how propeller blades effect drone performance helps remove some of the guess work.

Shop KDE Direct's line of propeller blades at Unmanned Systems Source.

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27Nov

Multi-Rotor or Single-Rotor: Which choice for your next project?

Although multi-rotor drones get most of the attention in the UAV world today, they’re not the only option for a flight project. But why would someone choose a multi-rotor over a single-rotor...or vice versa? Read on to learn the differences between the two, as well as their strengths and weaknesses. A key difference between the two, not surprisingly, is the number of rotors each offers. A multi-rotor aerial vehicle has several rotors that keep it airborne. In contrast, a single-rotor vehicle has one rotor plus a tail rotor to control its heading.  

Multi-Rotor

A multi-rotor is a good choice for operators who need to get a camera in the air for a short period of time. Multi-rotor drones are best for aerial photography and aerial cinematography. One of the advantages a multi-rotor is its high-degree of control over position and framing for aerial shots. However, a downside is speed and endurance limitations. Multi-rotor's high-level of stabilization comes with a constant need for fast and high-precision throttle changes. As such, Rules of aerodynamics dictate that the larger a rotor blade, the slower it spins, resulting in more efficiency. As such, a quad-copter is more efficient than an octo-copter but less efficient than a single-rotor. Flight time isn’t due to battery, but rather weight. There are options to help increase flight duration and payload capacity. A brushless motor for a heavy-lift electric multi-rotor is the best option for longer flight time and zero-vibration operations. If an operators wants the drone to stay airborne longer with a more substantial camera attached, a brushless motor for heavy-lift electric multi-rotor is your best option for longer flight time and zero-vibration operation.  

Single-Rotor

A single-rotor helicopter or other airborne tech project offers greater efficiency than a multi-rotor. Currently, single-rotor vehicles fill a small niche in the drone world. Single-rotors offer certain advantages. Remember the rules of aerodynamics? A single-rotor helicopter allows for longer blades to enable slower spinning and therefore expend less energy. Some applications require extended hovering, heavy payloads and/or long endurance. In these instances, a single-rotor may be the right option. However, single-rotor helis also have disadvantages. One knock is that they have significantly more vibration than a multi-rotor UAV. The larger blades also pose more danger. If a single-rotor UAV loses its overhead blade, the aircraft doesn't feature the fail safe of additional propellers. Whether flying a multi-rotor or a single-rotor, quality parts and components are vital for safety and performance.  

KDE Direct offerings

From pocket quad-copters for public safety to scanning depths of the ocean floor, KDE Direct constructs durable and efficient brushless motors and propeller blades for various applications. KDE Direct designs large motors, such as the KDE8218XF-120, for heavy lift down to miniature motors. KDE Direct UAS Multi-Rotor Brushless Motor Series is designed for UAS applications. These high-quality engineered motors provide zero-vibration operation for hours of maintenance-free usage and market-leading performance. The motors are tuned and optimized for the KDE Direct UAS Multi-Rotor Electronic Speed Controller Series.   KDE Direct is a worldwide leader in single-rotor brushless motors. The Generation 3 series uses top-tier materials and manufacturing processes to take the limits of efficiency, flight performance, and maintenance-free durability to new heights. The "G3" series provides state-of-the-art technology and performance-enhancements for the single-rotor marketplace and UAS applications.  
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