DEMO17 - CanSat-Challenge

Satellites are platforms for navigation, communication, earth observation and scientific research. They are compact and complex mechanical, electrical and digital systems. Satellites actively record their surroundings and deliver measured values. Some of these are also used for control purposes. Satellites provide important data for mobility on earth, such as positioning through systems like Galileo and GPS. Other services enable internet connections via satellites or emergency calls in remote areas. The conditions of weightlessness and radiation in orbit present unique conditions for medical and biological research.

Aim

We make engineering science more tangible for students: Is building a satellite extremely complicated or really easy? What do you actually need for a satellite? Which components are necessary, and how do they interact? Assembling and testing a satellite, even if it is only the size of a can, requires precise work and testing.

Once the goal is clear, the electrical parts must be assembled and checked to see if they work as desired. For this, the software must be adapted to the hardware. If the electronics work, the structure still needs to be assembled. 3D printed parts form the shell of the CanSat and the mechanisms are completed with a parachute including a release mechanism.

Approach

• Introduction to space travel, satellites, and engineering
• Integration of sensors for data acquisition during the flight
• Test of the experiment on the ground 
• Flight on and drop from a quadrocopter

Benefits

• Get to know space travel as an application of science and engineering
• Understand the process and organization involved in developing a space mission
• Demonstrate the application of electrical engineering and software in the real world
• Measure and analyze the atmosphere in flight