Design and construction of an autonomous pontoon-style boat with onboard quadrotor capable of landing/taking off from the boat. Initial motivation to seek out the source of an algal bloom by following its gradient in a lake. Goal is to achieve autonomous operation for minimum 8-hour segments, with a “fire and forget” interaction.

Milestones

• Boat built and floating

• Remote controllable with remote camera feed

• Basic autonomy and sensor readings; logging

• Autonomously tracking algae gradient (or substitute for testing)

Stretch Goals

• Quadrotor takeoff from stationary boat

• Quadrotor landing on stationary boat

• Quadrotor recharging

• Solar panel attachments