Investigation
PowerPoint: Introduction to Drones
Drones (1/group of students)
UAV with camera
Sensors
String, shoelaces, or rubber bands
Set of metal washers, bolts, or other small weights
Small food or postal scale
Stopwatches
Satellite image of your location
NGSS Performance Expectation
Students who demonstrate understanding can:
Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution, taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that may limit possible solutions. (MS-ETS1-1)
Objectives
- there are advantages and constraints on using a drone to collect environmental observations and data.
- design a scientific investigation and collect scientific data about their local environment.
- interpret, analyze, and communicate results based on sound scientific and mathematical reasoning.
- to determine the appropriate use of drone technology.
- to work as a team and solve problems.
Encourage students to talk to local experts, agency personnel, Elders, and other long-term local residents before deciding what to study, a study site, and their methods of data collection. Is there something related to the ocean or aquatic environment that is of concern to the community? Who can use the data the students collect? Is this issue something that could be monitored or studied safely and efficiently using a drone?
Projects designed to collect data and to measure climate-related environmental change that will affect the community can be extended into students engineering solutions and participating in forums about the community’s response. As part of the problem-solving process, invite an Alaska Native Elder or other cultural expert into your classroom to discuss environmental change over a longer time period or have students interview them. Alaska Native stories, cultural values, and histories reflect the knowledge and skills gained and passed down over generations of living in the same place for hundreds or thousands of years.
This investigation depends on the acquisition or use of drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (AUVs). Some activities are geared to use of an AUV with a camera and to use of an AUV with enough power to carry a payload of environmental sensors.
Some drone models tried out by teachers and students that have been very successful are the DJI Phantom 4 and the DJI Mavic. These are both upper-end drones with cameras and capabilities to fly effortlessly and return when low on power. Drone performance is important, so the learning experience stays focused on the science, not just flying the drone. The OpenROV named the Trident is an underwater drone that could also be used to collect oceanographic data.
Investigation #2 requires trials to measure the distance the drone can fly, so you will need to use a field with marked distances, like a football or soccer field.
ENGAGE:
(60 mins.)
1. Brainstorm with your students about how they might use a tool like a drone to explore a place they want to explore or to study a fish or wildlife population in a place that is hard or expensive to access.
Ask: What type of place fits that description?
How would we design a study?
What do we want to do, how often do we need to check or monitor?
2. The assignment to design a study using a drone will be the students’ final project, so this will get them thinking about the goal of their project.
3. Ask students how they might utilize drones to study the ocean.Students might have some ideas; discuss what they are thinking about and then begin the PowerPoint.
4. Take a break to look over the articles referenced in the PowerPoint and then look at the drones in the class at the end of the slideshow. You can take the drones out for a demonstration flight or have the students try them if they are easy to fly. An extension of this lesson could be to have the students to find images of drones on the internet and what they are used for and discuss this information as a class.
Extension:
If students need more practice or review of the process of designing an investigation, they can read about a study done by a group of students in Whitter on a population of kittiwakes and discuss how the students approached studying this population of kittiwakes. (See Student Survey of a Wildlife Population and Kittiwake Monitoring Study in the Resources section.) Kittiwakes and other seabirds spend most of the year in the open ocean, but nest on small rocky islands or cliffs during the summer. Why would you want to count all of the birds on the breeding colony every year? (to detect a change in the population or breeding success) What would be the advantages of using a drone to study a kittiwake population? (Boat travel is expensive and can be dangerous during bad weather; flying by in a plane would scare them off their nests. The drone could get close enough to snap an aerial photo for counting later but not too close to disturb the birds. The use of high-quality drone images has been shown to provide more precise counts than those of scientists counting from a boat or plane.)
Investigation #1: What payload can my drone carry?
(1-2 class sessions, 60 mins. each)
EXPLORE
Can your drone carry one or more small sensors that measure environmental conditions such as temperature, air pressure, and location of these into flight?
The Challenge: Design and conduct an experiment to find a practical limit on the payload mass your UAV can carry into flight.
|
Trial 1 UAV only |
Trial 2 UAV + Payload |
Trial 3 UAV + Payload |
Trial 4 UAV + Payload |
Trial 5 UAV + Payload |
|
|
Mass |
|||||
|
Ability to launch (good, fair, poor, fail) |
|||||
|
Ability to maneuver |
|||||
|
Payload mass |
Think it through: What will you do to collect the information you need?
Questions to consider: Does the sample data table above include all the information I need? Are the terms “good, fair, poor, and fail” sufficient descriptions of my drone’s abilities? Would adding other terms or defining a quantitative scale be helpful?
Have you considered everything you need to take into account to make sure each trial is fair?
Questions to consider: What environmental or drone-based variables that could interfere with your tests. How much error could they introduce into your results? How could you accommodate for those variables so that each trial is a fair comparison of how much weight your drone can carry?
How many separate trials will it take for you to feel confident in your final answer?
Questions to consider: Is one successful trial enough to identify how much weight your drone can carry? Is there a minimum amount of time it has to fly to count? If your drone has the ability to take off with a certain weight, but it has difficulty maneuvering, what does that tell you about its practical weight limit?
Fly your drone to collect data.
Record data about each session and flight. Use your data to answer the question.
EXPLAIN: Present your results.
You may want to discuss answers to the Questions to Consider as part of your results.
ELABORATE:
Search the Internet to find sensors your drone is capable of carrying into flight. Describe experiments you could conduct with one or more sensors and what you could learn from them.
Investigation #2: How fast can my drone fly?
(1-2 class periods, 60 mins. each)
ENGAGE:
An afterschool group decided they wanted to make a snapshot of a specific tree on their campus every day. In order to figure out how much time it would take to fly out to the tree, get the picture, and fly back each day, they needed an estimate of the drone’s average forward speed.
EXPLORE:
The Challenge: Design and conduct an experiment to find a practical maximum speed your UAV can fly.
|
Trial 1 |
Trial 2 |
Trial 3 |
Trial 4 |
Trial 5 |
|
|
Distance |
|||||
|
Time |
|||||
|
Average Speed |
Think it through: What will you do to collect the information you need?
Questions to consider: How can I measure the drone’s average speed over a certain distance without including the time it takes to launch and get up to speed? What is the minimum distance the drone should cover in each trial to get an accurate estimate of its speed? 5 yards? 50 yards? What did you find was the perfect distance for testing the drone and why?
Have you considered everything you need to take into account to make sure each trial is fair?
Questions to consider: How can I make sure every trial is consistent? Are all spotters/timers following the exact same procedure? Are spotters’ results the same or close on each trial? What environmental or drone-based variables could interfere with your tests? How much error could those variables introduce into your results? How could you accommodate for those variables so that each trial is a fair comparison of how fast your drone can fly?
How many separate trials will it take for you to feel confident in your final answer?
Questions to consider: What are the practical limits of flying your drone as fast as it can go? At the maximum practical speed you identified, how long would it take for the drone to fly out of the effective range of its controller?
What kind of graphics, videos, and/or photographs would be best to help you document your results? Could you construct a diagram to make what you did so clear that another group could set up the same experiment?
Fly your drone to perform your experiment.
Record data about each session and flight. Use your data to answer the question.
EXPLAIN: Present your results.
You may want to discuss answers to the Questions to Consider as part of your results.
ELABORATE: Follow up
If the tree the group wanted to photograph was located 40 yards from the drone launch site, how much time would it take to get the photograph each day? What other factors should the group consider in estimating the time the daily experiment would take?
Investigation #3: Comparison of Images from Satellites to UAV-Collected Images
EXPLORE:
Explore the basic concepts of remote sensing by comparing data collected by instruments on polar-orbiting satellites with pictures and videos collected via cameras on recreational drones. Make a hypothesis about this data comparison, for example:
“The satellite image will cover a greater area than our drone” (YES, of course, but you get the idea.)
Acquire a satellite image on the same day you plan to fly your drone. Identify as many features as possible (clouds, bodies of water, vegetation types, cities or towns etc…) (You can download SatCam, a free citizen science app for iOS devices, and free satellite images from MODIS Today via any web browser.)
- Conduct a drone flight and collect camera pictures. Identify as many features as possible.
- Organize your data. Here is an example of a table you could create:
|
Date |
Satellite Image |
UAV Photo |
|
Data Source & time |
|
|
|
Area Covered |
|
|
|
Smallest feature |
|
|
|
Largest feature |
|
|
State a conclusion based on your data.
Brainstorm additional projects you can do comparing drone data with satellite images, for example, green-up or green-down, identifying ice on near-by lakes, investigating fall foliage, etc.
Compile flight log, hypothesis, images, data chart, conclusion and any additional project pictures and results into a short report (or PowerPoint presentation) for a classroom presentation or science fair exhibit.
Investigation #4. Collecting Environmental Data with Drones
To give students experience with how drones can be valuable for collecting scientific data, thereby support their inquiry skills as well as their knowledge of drones, knowledge of sensing instruments, and experience flying drones and collecting data from them.
Students will make predictions, justify their predictions, design a prediction testing study that involves flying a drone with a sensor. Then they will analyze their data to see if their predictions were correct and suggest a followup study.
Session 1: Prediction reasons (justification), and Investigation Planning
Session 2: At a minimum, one class period, though this phase could stretch out depending on the scope of the investigation
Session 3: Data analysis and followup suggestions
ENGAGE:
Ask: Did you ever wonder how much air changes with altitude? Does it always get colder or moister? Does the pressure always decrease? And, how much do these conditions change? Do the changes vary with the weather, or time of day, or season, with what's on the surface, or with the elevation?
Explain that drones are great vehicles for collecting data to study these things.
EXPLORE:
Directions for students:
- Make a prediction. For example, "If I launch a drone on a flat grassy surface 20 feet above sea level at noon on the first day of every month for a whole year, I predict that there will always be a decrease in temperature going up 200 feet, but sometimes there will be a bigger difference between the surface temperature and the temperature at 200 feet than at other times.
- Explain your reasoning behind the prediction. For example, "I predict this because I know that air is thinner the higher you go and so is its retention of radiated heat at the surface."
- Choose a sensor. Make sure the sensor is designed to be capable of having its data uploaded to a computing device for analysis.
- Use Velcro or a string (tied with a strong knot) to attach the sensor to the drone.
- Decide how high you want to fly the drone.
- Make a table to record your data. Make one column for elevation and another for data readings from the sensor.
- Fly the drone, and note the data readings at equal intervals of change in elevation. For example, if you are flying your drone up to 200 feet, you could take a reading at a height slightly above ground level, then at 50 feet, 100 feet, 150 feet, and 200 feet.
- Once you have the data, determine if your prediction is correct and try to render a scientific explanation for the results.
- Present your data and explanation.
- Suggest what would be a good follow up study with the drone.
Students design a follow-up study, monitoring project or citizen science project using a drone. The goal is to use a drone as a tool to monitor something that is useful to study to add to the knowledge base of science and something that is useful in understanding or solving a problem in the local environment. Students need to consider constraints on the use of a drone in certain situations (e.g., proximity to airports or airstrips, the potential for disturbing wildlife or people in places they expect to have privacy or quiet) and compare the costs and benefits of using a drone versus other methods for collecting the data.
After students have designed and/or carried out their study, assess individual and team achievement in four areas:
- Developing questions
- Designing an investigation
- Conducting an investigation
- Communicating results
Assess teamwork and participation in individual and group discussion.
This investigation was developed by Sheryl Sotelo for Chugach School District after the District purchased drones with funds provided by Alaska Sea Grant through their school grant program.
It is important to remind the students that safety must be a focus of all activities so that no one gets hurt.
Prior Student Knowledge: Students should already have learned the skills to safely pilot the drone.
Components of Next Generation Science Standards Addressed
Asking Questions and Defining Problems
Define a design problem that can be solved through the development of an object, tool, process or system and includes multiple criteria and constraints, including scientific knowledge that may limit possible solutions. (MS-ETS1-1)
ETS1.A: Defining and Delimiting Engineering Problems
The more precisely a design task’s criteria and constraints can be defined, the more likely it is that the designed solution will be successful. Specification of constraints includes consideration of scientific principles and other relevant knowledge that is likely to limit possible solutions. (MS-ETS1-1)
Connections to Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science
Influence of Science, Engineering, and Technology on Society and the Natural World
The uses of technologies and any limitations on their use are driven by individual or societal needs, desires, and values; by the findings of scientific research; and by differences in such factors as climate, natural resources, and economic conditions.
All human activity draws on natural resources and has both short and long-term consequences, positive as well as negative, for the health of people and the natural environment. (MS-ETS1-1)
Common Core
MP.2 - Reason abstractly and quantitatively.
Educators who meet this standard:
B.1: Regularly engage students in appropriate projects and experiential learning activities in the surrounding environment.
B. Culturally-knowledgeable students are able to build on the knowledge and skills of the local cultural community as a foundation from which to achieve personal and academic success throughout life.
Students who meet this content standard should:
B.4. Identify appropriate forms of technology and anticipate the consequences of their use for improving the quality of life in the community.
