System Integration: How Drone Components Work Together as a System

In engineering terms, a drone is what is called a system , meaning it is a collection of interconnected components working together to achieve a specific purpose, which in this case is to achieve stable and controlled flight. Therefore, when designing a drone, you need to understand how each component interacts with each other to form a single system, and how each component influences the overall performance of the drone.

Here’s how all the components of a drone work together as an integrated system:

• Battery : The battery is the primary power source, supplying electrical energy to all components.
• Electronic Speed Controllers (ESCs) : The battery powers the ESCs, which regulate the flow of electricity to the motors . This is usually done through a power distribution board which distributes battery power to each ESC. Each motor is connected to its own ESC for precise speed and direction control.
• Motors and Propellers : The motors drive the propellers , converting electrical energy into mechanical thrust to lift and move the drone.
• Transmitter: The transmitter is the controller the pilot uses to operate the drone, it typically has two thumb sticks to control altitude, direction, forward and lateral movement, and can have more buttons and switches to control different functions in the aircraft.
• Receiver : The receiver receives the wireless control singals emitted from the transmitter.
• Flight Controller : The flight controller is a small computer that receives the pilot's control signals from the receiver , combines this with data from different sensors in order to control the flight of the vehicle. It does this by controlling the ESCs to adjust the speed of the motors.