Fpvdrone
Build Log: driftwing Modular Frame
Project Info
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Author | poojith |
| Project Name | driftwing (FPV Drone Frame) |
| Purpose | Designed for modularity + racing |
| Status | Waiting for grant + approval |
| Total Hours Spent | 37 hours |
| Timeline | July 3 ā July 13, 2025 |
Dev Logs
Log 1 July 3 3 hours
Kicked things off with a rough sketch of one drone arm. Kinda freestyled it at first just to get the proportions right. Itās giving low poly energy but itās fine for now. Started defining anchor points, main circles, and a flat reference. Just wanted to see something on screen ngl. Didnāt go too deep. Mostly just sketch and vibe.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| First sketch of arm |
Log 2 July 4 3 hours
Went full nerd and started dimensioning everything. Dialed in the hole placements to Ā±0.01 mm. The arm got some realistic mounting holes too. I used the Fix
constraint like a cheat code. The goal was making one arm perfect so I can mirror it later. Honestly, this part was surprisingly fun.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| Added dimensions and holes |
Log 3 July 5 3 hours
Time to go symmetric. Mirrored that one finished arm into four. Boom X-frame instantly. Seeing it all align felt good. I tweaked a bit to keep everything smooth and centered. Even added mid-line constraints to avoid future chaos. Very chill but satisfying work session.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| Mirrored full arm layout |
Log 4 July 6 3 hours
Today was clean-up and contour day. I cut a neat circular slot in the center and shaved off weird edges. Played around with how the arms curve into the center plate. Tried to keep it modular so one break doesnāt destroy the whole thing. Saving this design now felt way more solid.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| Finalized arm + center |
Log 5 July 7 3 hours
Started working on the outer arm tips. Calculated exact motor mount spacing and added dual-hole patterns. Had to rotate the mounts by 45Ā° because thatās whatās trending and functional. Checked the hole sizes twice. Shoutout to @toby from Slack for suggesting motor specs and pre-reviewing this part.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| Motor mount and hole align |
Log 6 July 8 3 hours
Assembled the center + arm units for the first time. Arms looked sharp. Made sure each arm was removable. Spaced things out so M3 screws could fit in nicely. I think weāre officially in the āit looks like a droneā phase. Had to fix a few weird shell merge issues too.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| Arms joined to center plate |
Log 7 July 9 3 hours
The overlapping bits between arm and mid-plate were bugging me. So I made a clean cut that fits like a socket. No glue or junky fits needed. Played with clearance values too. Hoping this makes disassembly a breeze in the field. Bonus points for modularity.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| Overlapping fix + cleanup |
Log 8 July 10 3 hours
Revisited motor mount designs after checking motor specs again. Standardized everything around a 23mm M2 bolt pattern. Realized I forgot to offset the motor cable exits fixed that too. Pretty confident the frame arms are done unless someone finds a flaw.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| Adjusted arms and motor holes |
Log 9 July 11 3 hours
Stacked in the standoffs to complete the sandwich design. The frame started to look like it came off a store shelf. Gave it more volume, added screw holes to lock the standoffs into the plates. No flex no wobble. Canāt wait to slap components on it once it's printed.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| First assembly + mounts |
Log 10 July 13 3 hours
Final render. Final sanity checks. Did a full dry run of what components will go where. Sent over screenshots to friends for peer feedback. Thinking of getting it CNCād instead of 3D printing now. Frameās 100% ready for slicing but still waiting on project grant approval.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| Final modular frame render |
Log 11 July 13 1 hours
this is what i use to control the drone. it sends signals to the receiver, like throttle, yaw, pitch, and roll basically all the movement stuff.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| transmitter pcb screenshot |
Log 12 July 13 1 hours
the receiver board was super tiny, so i had to be careful with the layout. placed the antenna module first, then worked my way around it. i routed the power lines thick and clean, then squeezed the signal traces into whatever space was left. kept everything low-noise and added filtering caps close to the power input and near the data lines.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| receiver pcb screenshot |
Log 13 July 17 4 hours
designing the FC PCB was kinda the most intense part. this thing connects everything ESCs, receiver, gyro, USB, power , so routing got hectic fast. i started with the MPU and MCU, placed them dead center to keep the traces equal.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| fc pcb screenshot |
Log 13 July 25 2 hours
designing the FC PCB was kinda the most intense part. this thing connects everything ESCs, receiver, gyro, USB, power , so routing got hectic fast. i started with the MPU and MCU, placed them dead center to keep the traces equal.
Image
| Description | Image |
|---|---|
| controller case | |
Built for Hack Club Highway ysws using Fusion 360
Give credits to @toby on Slack for early motor advice + feedback