Idle hands do the Devil's work.......so I designed a new tricopter!

Waiting on parts and hitting setbacks with the Gimbal Quad, I decided to design something new instead of just twiddling my thumbs.

I present the Manta Ray Mini Tricopter:

My first serious multirotor was a Fortis Airframes Titan tricopter, and I still fly it especially when I want to film something because I installed a 2-axis gimbal on it. It's hard to describe, but tricopters just have a different flight feel and envelope than quads, the yaw/tail movement is just so fluid like. It makes these frames very fun to fly even though they add a layer of mechanical complexity compared to a quadcopter.

This design/build is inspired by others on the web. Starting with inspiration from Twitchity's take on the mini-tri, I began looking at other designs, and even found a frame that was fully printed. For my interpretation, I also took inspiration from the web-series Rotor DR-1, which is based around a post apocalyptic future where drones were used to deliver medicine to help treat a viral outbreak.

I decided to give this tricopter a sleek body shell which is comprised of three main 3D printed parts: the main frame plate, upper shell, and lower shell. The arms are direct carryover from my quad designs, and since I have spares of these parts, that will make things easier. The frame is designed around the KISS ESC's and a Naze32 size flight controller. For FPV gear, the frame is also designed to carry a Fat Shark Pilot HD V2 camera. This is the newer low latency version. I have a micro 200mW VTX which was purchased from Range Video. On the bottom side of the frame plate there is a provision for mounting a Multirotor Superstore power distribution/regulator board. With the exception of the motors and servo, all electronics will mount inside the shell. 

As of this post, all the printed parts have been submitted and ordered through Shapeways. They will probably be here around Christmas time. In the meantime I need to order some motors, an extra Naze32, and a FHSS Futaba receiver to complete this build over the holidays.

If it flies well and works out, I am considering redesigning the arms to be 3D printed as well. I anticipate in the next 6-8 months that I will probably purchase my own 3D printer, so being able to print out a full mini tricopter frame on demand will be great.