Uplink, Downlink, and How NOT to Vent a High-Altitude Balloon
- James Flaten (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities)
- Seth Frick (University of Minnesota Twin Cities)
- Alex Ngure (University of Minnesota Twin Cities)
- Hannah Weiher (University of Minnesota Twin Cities)
- Monique V. Hladun (University of Minnesota Twin Cities)
- John Jackson (University of Minnesota Twin Cities)
Abstract
We uplink commands to high-altitude balloon missions using DTMF encoding on ham radio frequencies, interpreted by an Arduino microcontroller with a DTMF decoder shield. The commands are then circulated between multiple payloads using an XBee radio network. We echo uplink transmissions back to the ground, as confirmation of receipt, and downlink other housekeeping data using a StratoSAT ZigBee module monitoring Arduino output pins. We have also developed a radio-controllable vent mechanism that attaches directly to the neck of a weather balloon to vent helium in flight, in an attempt to prolong time spent at altitude. This last project, controlled from the ground through the DTMF uplink and XBee network (with on-board autonomous back-up capabilities as well) has been problematic, but we will report on progress and results to date.
How to Cite:
Flaten, J., Frick, S., Ngure, A., Weiher, H., Hladun, M. V. & Jackson, J., (2014) “Uplink, Downlink, and How NOT to Vent a High-Altitude Balloon”, Academic High Altitude Conference 2014(1). doi: https://doi.org//ahac.8156
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