Project Constraints

Constraints provide the boundaries for this project. If the design fails to meet one of the constraints then it fails to work as intended. The first constraint is weight. The design must be light enough that the small balloon it will be mounted to can carry it. The second constraint is that our design must fit in a waterproof housing. This will allow the design to function in capricious environments, without breaking. Without a waterproof housing the electrical components of the design, will be susceptible to terminable failure. The next constraint is heat dissipation. The design must be able to not overheat in such a way that any part of the electronics, batteries, lenses, or any other part of the design is damaged. This is linked with another design constraint, that the solution function in warm/cold conditions. This design is to be used in all sorts of conditions, so it must work in a way that the user is not worried about minor environmental factors. Another critical requirement is that the design will have a battery life equal to one balloon launch. Without this ability the solution will not be able to collect enough data to be useful. Finally the device must have a lenses that can capture waves that range from 300nm to 1150nm. This range is necessary so that the solutions micro-controller can establish the NDVI from the photos taken.