AEEM 5015C/5025C: UAV Design I/II

This course introduces students to the end-to-end design, build, and flight testing of custom unmanned aerial vehicles for a range of applications. Students work in teams to translate mission requirements into UAV designs, select and integrate airframes, propulsion systems, sensors, avionics, and flight-control hardware, and validate their vehicles through ground testing and flight demonstrations. The course emphasizes hands-on engineering practice alongside systems thinking, design tradeoffs, safety, documentation, teamwork, project planning, and project management.

In a past offering, the course collaborated with Midwest Air Drones on a custom spraying UAV project. Students contributed to the design and integration of an unmanned aircraft for agricultural spraying applications, along with an automatic refilling landing pad concept to support repeated field operations. The project gave students exposure to real design constraints, stakeholder needs, testing considerations, and the practical engineering decisions involved in moving from concept to working UAV systems.