Amjad Yaghi

Logbook

Aerodesign Payload

Robotics Systems on the SAE Aerodesign Advanced Payload subteam. Avionics decisions and firmware research.

10 entries

  1. October 2026

  2. LED driver practice questions

    Created a set of flashcards for some other members to learn about our LED driver.

    • teaching
  3. Entries lost to time

    hard to keep a log when things are moving so fast...

    Jul 3 to Oct 12, 2026
  4. July 2026

  5. Mastering IR detection (part 3)

    Completing my deep dive on phototransistors.

    • Multimeter probing the IR LED and phototransistor setup on a breadboard
    • QSD123 datasheet Figure 4, light current vs collector-emitter voltage, with the sloped region circled
    • experiment

  6. Mastering IR detection (part 2)

    I forgot things aren't ideal in the world of ICs... digging deeper!

    • Breadboard with photodiode circuit and multimeter probes
    • experiment
  7. June 2026

  8. Mastering IR detection (part 1)

    Studying opamps, documenting phase-reversal, and setting up for the best IR detection this world has ever seen.

    • TL082 wired as a unity-gain follower, driven and measured by the Analog Discovery 2 — W1 into the +input, scopes on input and output
    • Photodiode → op-amp buffer → Arduino: reverse-biased photodiode feeding a unity-gain buffer into Arduino A0
    • The biased version: R's bottom tied to +1.8 V so OUT rests at 1.8 V with no light, keeping it clear of the phase-reversal floor
    • experiment
  9. Entries lost to time

    hard to keep a log when things are moving so fast...

    May 16 to Jun 30, 2026
  10. May 2026

  11. Building out the morphological chart

    General team status check, then a payload session building out the morphological chart. Last log's sensing table is now condensed into annotated cells with images. Next step is picking a complete stack.

    • meeting

  12. Payload concept analysis

    Built a document of payload options for the team, then sat down as a subteam and analysed concept fragments across motion, interaction, and detection plus localisation. Morphological chart and concept summaries are up next.

    • meeting
    • research

  13. Avionics subteam onboarding

    Second onboarding, this time with the full subteam. Delivery is locked in over release, and the payload direction is leaning towards being omnidirectional and self-centring.

    • Polish university plane with externally mounted payloads
    • meeting

  14. Reading the payload history

    Read through the team's internal payload history. Need to find what the broader community has done for short-distance localisation and docking.

    • research

  15. Subteam alignment & concept gen kickoff

    First proper subteam meeting. Confirmed avionics owns detection and localisation. Last year's approach failed by putting all locating on the plane. Timeline is more aggressive: 6 weeks to a solid design, then prototype.

    • meeting

  16. First general meeting!

    First SAE Aerodesign general meeting. Got oriented on team structure and the payload subteam mission: capture and release on the DLZ. Summer focus is research and derisking.

    • meeting