RUNNING HEADER: PROJECT ZEPHYR PROGRESS REPORT 5

Project Zephyr
Progress Report 5
Vallabi Vallaban
Kelly Crocker
Noah Wong
January 10, 2017

Objective:
The team spent this time starting preparations for construction, testing components, and
researching legal matters.
Previous Objective:
This time period was spent determining the payload and optimizing the ratio of payload weight
to the net weight of different blimp dimensions.

PROJECT ZEPHYR PROGRESS REPORT 5

Materials and Methods

1.

2.

Construction Outline
3D printing
1.1.
Supports
1.1.1.
How will they be connected together, epoxy or screws?
1.1.2.
How long will it take to 3D print it?
1.1.3.
Will we have to pay for the 3D printing material?
1.1.4.
What will it weigh?
1.2.
Payload container
1.2.1.
Dimensions?
1.2.2.
Can it be printed in one piece or multiple?
1.2.3.
Contains: Raspberry Pi, batteries, wiring, possibly sensors
1.2.4.
Can we design the container around the sensors but so that they can still get an accurate
reading?
1.2.5.
How will it attach?
1.2.6.
Allowances for landing?
1.3.
Elevator Flap
1.3.1.
How will it attach?
1.3.2.
Design?
1.3.3.
How much will it weigh?
1.3.4.
Will it be printed in one piece?
Mylar Balloon Construction
2.1.
Assemble framework
2.2.
Drape Mylar and measure to cut
2.3.
Cut Mylar into shape
2.4.
Secure the Frame to the Mylar
2.4.1.
Epoxy or other method
2.5.
Heat seal the Mylar to itself to create an Airtight barrier
2.6.
Attach valve
2.6.1.
Type?
2.6.2.
Weight?
2.6.3.
Seal with Epoxy

Figure 1: This is a rough outline of the projected progression of construction and any questions
the team needs to answer in order to incorporate that particular element into the construction.
The main focus of the time period was preparing for the construction stage of this project.
The outline shown in Figure 1 depicts the next steps for this project in order to be completely in
the construction phase. In order for that to happen, the parts that will be 3D printed need to be
designed and sent to the printer. These include the support system, payload container, and
elevator flap. They will most likely be designed and printed in that order. Something the team
needs to decide is how the components will be attached to the mylar of the blimp and how that
seal will be made to remain airtight. The team has decided to seal the mylar to itself around the
frame using a heat sealing method. It is imperative that the vessel remain airtight because every

PROJECT ZEPHYR PROGRESS REPORT 5

faulty seal leaks helium into the atmosphere and the blimp gets closer to the point at which it
cannot keep aloft with its 3 kg payload.

Figure 2: This is a representation of the new support system design for the semi-rigid blimp. It
had fewer supports than the previous design and will require less material to print.
The support system was redesigned after reassessing the design in terms of rigidity and
structure such as going with a dirigible model or a semi rigid model. After brainstorming
possible outcomes of using either design, the semi-rigid design was deemed the most effective
for our project. With this determination, it became apparent that the support structure previously
designed had entirely too many components for a semi-rigid design as it was designed for a
dirigible style model. The new model is simplified considerably, with approximately 40% less
material required.
The team researched how this project would be viewed by the Federal Aviation
Administration. The project will for certain be viewed as an Unmanned Aerial System, but the
uncertainty regards if the FAA will see it as a drone as well. A drone is defined by the FAA as a
small unmanned aerial system, so the question regards what the parameters of small are. This

PROJECT ZEPHYR PROGRESS REPORT 5

determination will drive the paperwork the team needs to compete and the red tape they need to
navigate in order to be cleared to test this blimp in the necessary capacity.

PROJECT ZEPHYR PROGRESS REPORT 5

Data and Results

Time (in minutes after 16:00)
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90

Output (volts)
20.4
20.3
20.2
19.5
19.1
18.6
17.9
17.3
16.8
16.2
15.5
15.0
14.2
13.2
11.7
9.2
6.6
3.8
1.8

Figure 3: This table shows the results of measuring the solar panel power output over time. The
numbers show that the power output of the panel decreases over time exponentially as the sun
moves further from its zenith.

Figure 4: This graph of the data in Figure 3 supports the hypothesis that times closer to the suns
zenith yield a larger energy output.

PROJECT ZEPHYR PROGRESS REPORT 5

The photovoltaic cell were tested by measuring its output with a multimeter every five
minutes for an hour and a half, starting at four oclock in the afternoon while it was sitting in the
same place in the sun. As is evidenced by the data, the sun was setting during the later part of the
test (sunset that day was at 5:02 pm) and the peak output was 20.4 volts recorded at 4:00 pm.
This supports the hypothesis that higher energy outputs can be achieved when the sun is closer to
its zenith. This test strongly suggests to the team that they run their tests during peak daylight
hours in order to get the most power out of the photovoltaic cells and be able to run longer. This
brings up a question of timing that will be determined closer to the launch date when the team
has a better idea of the FAA regulations and guidelines they will need to abide by.

Figure 5: The mass of the helium to be used to fill the blimp was determined through this
calculation.
The team calculated the mass of the helium for this project at Standard Temperature and
Pressure (STP). STP is defined at 1 atm of pressure and 273 K. The mass of helium at STP will
aid the team in determining lift at different temperatures and in a variety of weather conditions.

PROJECT ZEPHYR PROGRESS REPORT 5

Resources
D. (2015, December 28). Regulations Overview (including contacting the US FAA). Retrieved
January 10, 2017, from http://community.balloonchallenge.org/t/regulations-overviewincluding-contacting-the-us-faa/676.
Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. (2017, January 6). Retrieved January 10, 2017, from
http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/textidx?c=ecfr&sid=a3a21673a5020d6763cfb10d068366d8&rgn=div5&view=text&node=14
%3A1.0.1.1.1&idno=14#14:1.0.1.1.1.0.1.1.
Gases - Densities. (n.d.). Retrieved January 10, 2017, from
http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/gas-density-d_158.html.
Hydrogen and Helium in Rigid Airship Operations. (n.d.). Retrieved November 22, 2016, from
http://www.airships.net/helium-hydrogen-airships.
The FAA's New Drone Rules Are Effective Today. (2016, August 29). Retrieved January 10,
2017, from https://www.faa.gov/news/updates/?newsId=86305.
Volume of an Ellipsoid. (n.d.). Retrieved November 3, 2016, from http://www.webformulas.com/Math_Formulas/Geometry_Volume_of_Ellipsoid.aspx.