Anybody who knows anything about solid hobby rocket motors knows that they… um… are solid. So there’s really no way to control the amount of thrust they generate. Right?
Kind of. In this BPS.space video, Joe explains the challenges of trying to achieve any type of thrust control in a solid motor and then he works on a bit of a hack to this dilemma. He creates computer-controlled ceramic paddles that open and close over the business end of the motor in controlled intervals to create pulse-width modulation… aka thrust control!
Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, TinyGO, or even use the Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.
Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell is every Wednesday at 7pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat – we’ll post the link there.
