Conventional CanSat systems descend using uncontrolled parachutes, making them entirely dependent on wind conditions. This results in unpredictable landing locations, leading to component damage, data loss, and mission failure. To address this limitation, this paper presents the Advanced Guided CanSat System (AGCS), a low-cost, autonomous CanSat capable of steering itself toward a pre-defined target location during descent using a servo-controlled steerable parafoil parachute. The proposed system employs a Teensy 4.0 microcontroller (600 MHz) as the central flight computer, which processes real-time data from a BNO055 Inertial Measurement Unit, a BMP280 barometric pressure sensor, and a NEO-M8N GPS module to estimate position and heading error. Based on this information, the flight computer generates control commands for the servo motors to adjust the parafoil lines and steer the CanSat toward the target coordinates. Live telemetry is transmitted wirelessly to a Ground Control Station using the ESP-NOW protocol via onboard ESP32 modules, while an ESP32-CAM provides continuous live video streaming throughout the descent. All electronics are distributed across seven custom-designed circular PCBs, ensuring a compact and structured hardware layout. The AGCS demonstrates that precise, guided descent is achievable in a small-scale, affordable CanSat platform.
Tools: EasyEDA,Solid Works,Plotly,Teensy 4.0,ESP32,LoRa Module,SQLite
Department: Department of Electrical Engineering
Poster
