Reitz Student Going to International Science Fair

Student Demonstration of Drone He Created That He Is Taking to International Science Fair
When: 9:45 a.m., Friday – May 8
Where: Reitz Bowl, behind Reitz High School

Background: Ryan Loehrlein, a Reitz senior, and his teacher, Nora Walsh, will be traveling to Pittsburgh for the International Science and Engineering Fair next week. Friday, Ryan will be doing a test flight in the Reitz Bowl of the drone that he designed, 3D printed and built for the science fair. He has attached cameras and sensors to the drone, and it was designed to partner with a SWAT team and send information back to a mobile command unit, cell phone, tablet or PC before the tactical team enters a building. The drone has the capability of being programmed with blue prints of a building so that it can fly the entire building on autopilot.

Ryan explains, “The Guardian Angel” (his drone) is run off of many software and coding systems. One key feature of the drone was to read blueprints so it can autonomously fly. The software it uses for the autonomous flight is NAZA MV2 Multirotor which uses a direct interface with NAZA MV2 Ground Station 4.0.11. These software are currently on the market, but Ryan adapted the program to allow it to fly on a single path without human interactions. This drone has many other key features. Some of these features are flying autonomously outside, flying “The Guardian Angel” from an iPad, computer, or the Spektrum DX9 transmitter. It also has the capability to lose 3 motors in flight and still maintain flight. The most advanced feature the drone has is to know exactly where it is in the air and self-land itself if there is an emergency scenario. He said, “The “Guardian Angel is currently one of the most advanced pieces of drone technology in the world currently.”

He explained that his motivation for the project was initiated by his family members. “My sister is a sheriff in Posey County and I originally was seeking a way to protect her in any situation. I eventually realized that I would be able to design and create a drone that would be able to do almost anything law enforcement agencies would need.” He said he eventually realized that the drone had applications wider than just keeping his sister safe.