Fixed-Wing Environmental UAV

Dev log#13
Research on BME680 and how it works and also MQ-135. Needed to know the basics before we take a big leap

Dev Log #12
Locked in the full pinout and header architecture for the Teensy 4.1 in KiCad today ,both 24-pin side headers are officially set up and ready to go. Decided against running a separate co-processor setup for now to keep the hardware stack streamlined and fast, letting the Teensy handle the whole flight and telemetry system directly. Shifted straight into the sensor array starting with the MPU6050 IMU. Instead of messing around with raw IC footprint files and internal silicon pins, mapped it cleanly using an 8-pin connector layout with proper I2C and interrupt net labels. Next step: wrapping up the rest of the sensor payload connections!

Dev Log #11
Focused on manually mapping out the Teensy 4.1 schematic headers and pinouts in KiCad today. It turned out to be way more time-consuming than expected ,especially sorting out the physical layout versus the pin numbering jumps. I definitely could have just downloaded a pre-made symbol from GitHub or online repositories, but doing it from scratch was worth the hassle to actually get hands-on and learn KiCad properly. Headers are locked in, wrapping up for today!

Dev Log #10
Digital infrastructure is officially sorted. Secured our X, YouTube, LinkedIn, and GitHub, and got the web landing page completely lined up. On paper, our brand ecosystem is fully live.
In reality? Currently staring at a blank feed waiting for the algorithms to pick us up like it’s a high-stakes exam result. Engagement’s sitting at a solid zero…hope for the best

Dev Log #9:
Still caught in the research spiral over whether to snag an Ender 3 V3 or a Bambu Lab A1. The Ender’s cheaper and tempting, but the A1’s auto flow calibration would save us so much pain when printing delicate LW-PLA wing profiles. Not that it matters right now—the debate is basically on pause while we sit around waiting for the wallet to stop reading $0.

Dev Log #8:
Hardware selection is officially locked in. After hunting down an absolute steal on an M10 GPS + compass module, settling on the Teensy 4.1, and getting the full FPV gear lined up, the core tech stack for this telemetry build is completely sorted on paper. In reality? I am currently staring at a checkout screen waiting on funding approval like it’s a high-stakes exam result. Wallet’s sitting at a solid zero balance right now……

Dev Log #7:
While waiting for my components to ship, I spent today working out a cleaner way to handle the propulsion physics for horizontal cruise flight. By planning for a variable-pitch mechanism, the flight software can actively feather the unpowered blades to zero degrees so they align perfectly with the oncoming air currents. This cuts out the usual aerodynamic drag penalties completely, letting the platform cruise efficiently on a single motor like a standard plane while keeping the dual setup ready for vertical lift. Now, I’m jumping right back into KiCad to map out the extra control lines on the board!

Dev Log #6:
With the master schematic layout finally taking shape, I took a massive step back to clean up and finalize our official BOM.md list for the GitHub repository. I stripped out all the fluctuating market price rates to keep the sheet clean and added a dedicated procurement summary tracking our immediate core prototyping items (the Pi 5, primary navigation modules, custom PCB fabrication, and the analog FPV kit).
Now, we play the ultimate waiting game for procurement clearance before we can actually order the physical hardware components. Since we’re in limbo waiting on the parts, I’m currently working on the custom KiCad board layout design again after taking a much-needed short break lol. Time to shake off the confusion, map out the actual trace routing, and get these dual-row tracks perfect!

Devlog #5:
This is my official first time using KiCad, and honestly, it’s a blast ,yet wildly confusing all at once. The fun part is definitely designing Project Phantom’s brain from scratch, mapping out how the Teensy 4.1 will route high-speed data to the ESP32 and command the long-range nRF24L01+ PA/LNA data link.
The confusing part? KiCad’s quirks!
Getting hit with random template errors, figuring out shortcuts, and learning how to mirror generic socket headers (Conn_01x24) with the X key just to keep connection points facing outwards has been a massive learning curve. But the parallel dual-row tracks for the Teensy are officially down, and the master schematic layout is finally coming to life!

Dev Log #5:
The Backstory & How We Got HereIf
you look at the timer on this project, it says 3 hours. Let’s be real ,I’ve been living and breathing this build way before I started tracking it on Stardance. The hardware sitting on my bench right now represents months of legacy testing, crashed foam, and troubleshooting.
We started out testing baseline concepts on an Apprentice S15e trainer and an AtomRC Dolphin frame, proving out basic telemetry strings, tuning stock flight controllers, and making sure our environmental sensor array (BME680 and PMS5003) actually tracked data mid-air.
Now, we are completely outgrowing the kit phase. The goal from here on out is 100% engineering sovereignty. We are moving away from pre-bought foam and stock autopilot systems to build a completely custom, scratch-printed LW-PLA airframe with carbon fiber structural spars. On the software side, I’m writing the custom flight firmware from absolute zero and tuning my own PID stabilization loops on a Teensy 4.1.
We just finished mapping out the full market-rate upgraded BOM, integrated our flight validation video from LinkedIn into the main README, and locked down the co-processing vision stack specs (Raspberry Pi 5 + depth camera + global shutter industrial camera).
The foundation is built. Time to torture myself with a million compiler errors and endless troubleshooting to make this scratch build fly.
Let’s get to work.

Just spent the last hour fixing up the docs and locking in the Stardance dashboard. The LinkedIn flight video is finally embedded right in the README so people can see the validation plane actually flying in the air with one click. I also made a clean BOM file from scratch to separate the gear on my bench from the upgrades I need to buy. I did some actual price digging on Alibaba and AliExpress to make the budget realistic, factoring in the true market cost of the Raspberry Pi 5, about 500 AED for the FPV kit, and adding a depth camera plus a global shutter industrial camera for the vision stack. The whole point here is complete engineering sovereignty. People think it is just a pre-bought foam kit, but I am doing it all from absolute zero with custom flight software, my own tuned PID loops, and a 100% scratch-printed LW-PLA airframe. Time to torture myself with a million compiler errors and endless troubleshooting, but honestly it is going to be incredibly fun.

Product Research again…

Finding out ways to patent the custom aircraft design soo it belong to me lol ntg much

just mapping out the master BOM and looking up part specs. Sourcing everything for the flight controller stack and the environmental sensors so I know exactly what components I need to order next…..my wallets gone