There have been some really fascinating discussions recently on the WRA²  Water Rocket Forum regarding Water Rocket Flight Computers and Water Rocket Electronic Timers. The Engineering Team at U.S. Water Rockets was inspired and motivated by the discussions to put the finishing touches on a back-burner project involving a completely new Flight Computer Design.

For their newest version flight controller, U.S. Water Rockets has abandoned their integrated camera which they have used in the past.  By using a separate camera module, they can advance to newer camera designs without needing to redesign the entire controller. According to their press release they can even use an off-the-shelf camera design if a suitable model were to become commercially available. They state that some of the recently released cameras are nearly as cost-effective as their home grown variety, so it would be foolish not to take advantage of them if they ever become small and light enough for use. This new configuration will also allow them to remotely mount the camera for interesting new views and this feature would only require a different length USB® cable to remotely control the camera with the new controller.

The new flight computer is reported to have an upgraded telemetry capability and range, as well as a miniature ZigBee® transciever for redundant digital communications, which can be used for multiple functions. The most significant of the new capabilities is wireless firmware upgrade. This new ability opens up the possibility of building the computer into the payload compartment structure, which saves space and weight because access panels and mounting hardware can be eliminated by encasing the controller inside a completely sealed compartment..  

While on the pad the wireless communications feature provides an added measure of safety and allows the team to remain safely away from the rocket during all phases of the launch. No person need approach the rocket for any reason while pressurized on the pad.

Additionally,  the secondary communications path is maintained to redundantly monitor all vital systems including battery, altimeter, and camera status. Proper operation of these vital systems can be confirmed before releasing the rocket. The system can even report the ambient temperature and barometric pressure at the moment of launch. The addition of this new feature could provide useful weather data for comparison between launches and be used to insure future launches are only done under optimum conditions.

Another interesting new detail to come out is that the data rate of the new controller is so high it has even been used to inform a remote webcam to take a photo at a specific altitude, which provides some breathtaking photos of rocket flights!

The last and most important new feature of the new design is the switch to BGA (ball grid array) components, which has reduced the size and weight of the entire computer and lowered the power consumption in a significant way. These modifications have cut the size and weight of the electronics/payload/deploy module atop the rocket by 25% over the previous design and will therefore translate directly to higher altitude flights.

U.S. Water Rockets hopes to establish a new WRA² World Record for Altitude using this new system in the near future, weather permitting.