Team Video - Flight Footage
TEAM VIDEO - PROGRESS REPORT 2
Our team had a lot to do these past few weeks in preparation for the launch. The first issue we had to figure out was the camera rig. Ever since we found the 3-D model for the rig online, our group had been trying to figure out how to print it with camera mounts on the proper sides and so that the rig itself could be bolted onto the payload board with the threaded rods we had. Ren really helped us out as he solved the problem and printed us a brand new rig that worked perfectly. We had been attempting to use the 123D software to add a camera mount to the side of the rig that was missing one. However, it appears as though the design included two free standing mount pieces that were to be used to bridge the gaps between both main sides of the printed rig. We definitely learned that there was another, less complicated way to go about printing the rig and that we probably could have saved a lot of time and printing filament had we slowed down and thought through exactly how we were modifying the rig.
Another one of our concerns going in to these weeks was the battery life of our GoPro cameras. We had done research on this topic before but came up with wildly varying accounts. We knew that the cold air in the atmosphere was the biggest threat to the battery life so we put one of the GoPros into a freezer with the anti-fog inserts and let it record for as long as it could. Unfortunately, the camera died within the hour it sat in the freezer. This camera was not completely charged, though it did display all three bars of battery. Our group had seen others’ accounts of their GoPros lasting for hours out in the snow so 45 minutes in the freezer was a little disappointing. We assumed that this wouldn’t be as much of an issue because the cameras wouldn’t be in low temperatures for the entire flight and we were planning on completely charging each camera. We decided against using the battery packs made for GoPros because they were quite expensive and people had varying degrees of success with them.
Come launch day, we were ready to install all of the cameras in the rig with the anti-fog inserts.
We turned the cameras on just before the balloon was let go in order to get as much battery life out of them as possible. Upon retrieving and viewing the footage we were disappointed to see that the batteries had only lasted about 40 minutes, which was somehow less time than the not-quite-charged camera in the freezer. We still got a nice amount of footage, but the balloon pop and the descent were not caught on film. We probably should have spent more time looking into those extra battery packs just to ensure a longer battery life during the flight. The GoPro battery packs would have probably been too weighty to include in this flight, as they are each just over half a pound and we would have needed five of them so we would have had to find some sort of alternative.
We were very fortunate to have been able to preview the use of the 3D stitching software that would be used to make our final 360-degree video. If the stitching goes well, we should have a final product to show people who have supported our class’ endeavors this semester.
