Well yesterday, January 16th, 2009, we tested the parachute for Balloon 2. Our first test used a can of dried up cement. Photos Below:

On top of the building before throwing out the parachute.

The Parachute has been deployed…

and lands safely!

After the initial test,  our general consensus was the parachute did not have a heavy enough package, and didn’t deploy quick enough. So to remedy this,  we took a coke can, and filled it with gravel and repeated the test again.

Photos Below:

Chris gets ready for the second trial.

and down it comes, more efficently, and deploys quicker.

Balloon 2 is on a tight schedule. We’re launching the 31st of January, and not everything is put together yet. Because of this, vital systems are being pushed for completion first. Still, others are hard at work with sensors and data collection tools, trying to get them ready in time as well.

As for Sensors – Joseph has been working on trying to get the temperature and pressure sensors up. The on board temperature sensor is working great now, and he’s been busy getting the external temperature sensor and a pressure sensor on-line.

Here’s a shot of the external temperature sensor board. It’s an i2c based Maxim 6633 – the same chip as the internal sensor. The header is carrying i2c clock and data signals, as well as power and ground.

This is our pressure sensor. It’s an analog device, so it’s plugged into a header that interfaces with the PIC’s ADC (Analog to Digital Converter).

Jeremy and Nick have also been working a good bit on getting the cameras up and taking pictures/video with remote commands. It’s starting to look good, and they have a board wired up and are currently testing. They are using a 2222n transistor and raising TTL logic line high on the PIC that is connected to the Base pin of the transistor. This allows current to flow from the Collector to the Emitter, simulating a button push to either turn on the camera, or start recording video. Here’s a shot of the test setup.

It’s coming along great, and everything is on track for a January 31st launch. Here’s one last picture – the board powered up and transmitting a basic location beacon:

We are now in the final stages of development for CAPE’s second balloon project. The PCB and circuitry have already been developed. It’s now down to final software testing/integration and structure build.

Today was the second work day, and we accomplished alot yesterday and today. We were able to get the temperature sensors up and running, finalize the On Board Computer (OBC) code, and we saw GPS data transmitted from the board to the ground station over the air. We started building the outer housing, and cut some styrofoam to fit. We even took a few test pictures, and the cameras are working perfect.

For the outer structure itself, a sturdy cardboard box has been chosen. We’re using 1in. thick Powerfoam Insulation cut to size to insulate the interior of the box.

There was styrofoam everywhere..

A few measurements were taken, and the backing of the foam was cut using a utility blade.

Here’s a completed picture of the bottom insulation cut to size, with a hole for the earth-facing camera.