## Inspiration
We were inspired by the incredibly quiet flight of owls. When compared in a chamber with other birds, owls are dead-silent in comparison
## What it does
Our submission for this hackathon is a set of propellers which use the properties of owls wings to decrease the volume of commercial drones.
## How we built it
We created the design in CAD and used some photos of owls and real drone blades as reference to create a quality, 3D printable propeller. We then used multiple 3D printers to create prototypes for functional propellers, and perfected our methods for creating the "fletching" on the blade and the "nubs" at the front to displace the air.
We also wired up a control system from scratch to demonstrate the concept, which used a brushed motor, motor controller, and receiver, and power switch.
## Challenges we ran into
The "fletching" on the propeller was particularly problematic. We found that it was very difficult to print all in one piece, and not destroy the fletching. We also found that layer staircasing had an effect on the aerodynamics of the propeller itself, which lead us towards a method of printing the fletching separately, and printing the blade in an orientation that reduced dra induced by the staircasing effect.
## Accomplishments that we're proud of
The fact that we were able to perfect the blade to a degree that it actually feels like a feathe was something that was really encouraging for us. We also impressed ourselves with the creation of the control system for demonstration, as this was certainly not a requirement of the designation, but will allow up to demonstrate the noise reduction of the blade design and the fact that it still generate noticeable thrust
## What we learned
We learned so much through the course of this. Biomimicry was certainly the right challenge to choose. We learned about what effects noise pollution can have on people and wildlife, as well as many features present in owl's wings that allow them to be so quiet in flight. Another interesting thing that we learned was that scientists don't actually know exactly why owl's wings are perfectly silent. They think they know most of the reason why, but arent 100% sure.
## What's next for Whisper Wings
Me personally, I will be installing these on my personal drone to do a proper assessment on the noise reductions of this blade design compared to a normal blade.
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