The Aviation Research Society wins the All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest for the fifth consecutive time

The Aviation Research Society wins the All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest for the fifth consecutive time
~Realizing the dream of "building something that flies with your own hands and flying it with your own hands"~

Aviation Research Association (NokoLAT)
Takashi Matsumoto, 3rd year student, Department of Mechanical Systems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering

Our university's official club, the Aviation Research Club NokoLAT (hereafter referred to as Aviation Research Club), participated in the All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest (※) held in December last year, where they won first place in the general category (Ota Ward Mayor's Award, Best Craft Award) and the TeamLab Award in the Unique Design category. This marks their fifth consecutive first place win in the general category. We spoke to Matsumoto Takashi, who served as the club's representative until December.

*All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest
This is a contest held by the Japan Society for Aeronautical and Space Sciences. There are four categories: general, automatic pilot, multicopter, and unique design. This year, the Aeronautical Research Society entered "Anomalocaris" in the general category, "Meganeura" in the automatic pilot category, "black berry" in the multicopter category, and "Platypus" in the unique design category.

Please tell us about the activities of the Aviation Research Society.

The Aviation Research Club is a club that designs and builds mainly flying things, such as radio-controlled airplanes, radio-controlled airships, multicopters (drones), and model rockets.
Throughout the year, we work towards two competitions, the All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest and the Tanegashima Rocket Contest, and we form teams and start working little by little from three to four months before the competition. Outside of that time, we mainly work on making things that individuals want to make, such as radio-controlled airplanes, drones, and rockets.
The strength of the Aviation Research Society lies in the know-how left behind by our predecessors. In addition to direct guidance and materials from within the club, we absorb various technologies by looking at and learning from past aircraft, and use them in our production. Of course, we are also proactive in incorporating new technologies, and in recent years have been using 3D printers and parts made from CFRP (short for Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastics, a type of resin reinforced and strengthened with carbon fiber) in our production.

Most of our members are students from the Department of Mechanical Systems Engineering, but because we are also working on automatic control, we also have a certain number of members from the Department of Intelligent Information Systems Engineering. We also have members from other departments in the Faculty of Engineering and the Faculty of Agriculture.
There is no prerequisite knowledge before joining, so students from any department can participate!

Congratulations on your fifth consecutive victory at the All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest!

In the general division, which the team has won four times in a row, competitors fly designated missions within the maximum flight time, and compete on the basis of overall points that evaluate the aircraft's performance and maneuverability.
Previous competitors had all won with aircraft with distinctive concepts, so this year I took on the challenge with a unique twin-engine aircraft with two motors. The name of the aircraft is "Anomalocaris."

Because we wanted the appearance to be as close as possible to the real thing, we adopted the coloring of the YS-11, which is also a twin-engine aircraft and was the first domestically produced passenger aircraft after the war, made its first flight in 1962 and carried the Olympic torch around the country at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
It took time to come up with ideas and come up with the electrical components required for a twin-engine aircraft, but we were able to achieve our fifth consecutive victory. I was happy when we were declared the winner, but my seniors had told me, "Next time, you'll win five in a row!" so I felt the greatest sense of relief in being able to meet their expectations.

At tournaments, I feel like the level of the other teams is improving every year.
Although we are rival teams, one of the joys of the tournament is the technical exchange with other schools, where we can learn in detail about the features of our aircraft.

What made you choose the Aviation Research Association?

After I decided to enter Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, I looked at the list of clubs on their website and found the Aviation Research Club. I've always loved airplanes and radio-controlled cars, so I thought it would be fun to be able to build one myself.
As a first-year student, I participated in the All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest in the Unique Design category, and as a second-year student, I participated in the Autopilot category.

The appeal of making radio-controlled airplanes and model rockets is that you can realize the dream of "making something that flies with your own hands and flying it with your own hands." Since they move in three dimensions through the air, it takes some practice to pilot them, but it's a lot of fun and a sense of accomplishment to see the aircraft you designed and built from cutting out the materials flying freely in the sky.

There are other manufacturing clubs at TUAT, but the Aviation Research Club is small-scale production, so each member can complete the process from design to production. One of its features is the high degree of freedom to freely create whatever they want to make.

Will you also be participating in this year's Tanegashima Rocket Contest?

The Aeronautical Research Society also participates every year in the Tanegashima Rocket Contest, which is held at JAXA's Tanegashima Space Center.
This event develops, builds and launches handmade model rockets and functional satellite models, and there are two categories: a rocket category and a CanSat category (a small mock artificial satellite the size of a soda can).
Usually, the All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest is held in September, and the Tanegashima Rocket Contest is held in March, so after the All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest is over, I'll take a little break, refresh my mind, and start preparing again. Another attraction of the Aviation Research Club is that I can make a variety of things in different genres.

This year, eight teams from the Aeronautics Research Society entered the competition, and all of them passed the document screening. Three rockets and five CanSats will compete.
Together with another third-year student, I will be competing in a rocket height competition.

The Tanegashima Rocket Contest was canceled two years ago and held online last year due to the impact of COVID-19. This year, it was scheduled to be held on-site for the first time in three years, but unfortunately it was changed to an online event due to the spread of the Omicron strain. The online event will be judged based on presentations and a question-and-answer session.
I was looking forward to going to the Tanegashima Space Center, so I'm a little disappointed, but I'll do my best online.

Do you have any difficulties balancing your classes and part-time work?

Both the All-Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest and the Tanegashima Rocket Contest are usually held during long vacation periods.
When we do test flights, we have to adjust the schedules of our team members, but it's not too difficult to balance this with classes.
Many of our members have part-time jobs.
The club room is a comfortable place where we sometimes do class assignments or study for tests with our friends.

Additionally, what you learn in class may be useful in your production, and the knowledge you gain through production may help you understand the lessons.
To build an autopilot aircraft, you need programming knowledge, but since what I learn in class isn't enough, I study by attending study groups and learning from my seniors.

The Aviation Research Club is mainly active for students up to the third year before they are assigned to a laboratory, but seniors often come to check on how things are going. Seniors can not only give advice on production, but also help with choosing a laboratory.
I feel very encouraged because there are senior members of the Aviation Research Society in the laboratory I have been assigned to. In the laboratory, we are researching CFRP materials, which are also used in the manufacture of airplanes, so this also motivates me to continue my research.

I believe that the experience I gained in the Aviation Research Club, doing everything from design onwards by myself and working on projects in a team, will be useful in many ways in the future.

Do you have any goals for your future activities?

Due to the social situation over the past two years, face-to-face technical transfer has not been going well, and the lack of handover was also evident in the preparations for this year's All Japan Student Indoor Flying Robot Contest. We were able to achieve some results because the students who joined before the COVID-19 pandemic were still active, but we need to continue our activities properly for next year and beyond.

We hope to not only further the transfer and acquisition of skills so that participants can consistently achieve results in competitions, but also to revitalize the free, individual creative activities that have declined during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Please give a message to prospective prospective students.

Studying for entrance exams will likely come with many hardships and difficulties, but as the saying goes, "water wears away the stone." If you work hard and diligently, you will find many unexpected joys waiting for you at university. Be persevering and persevere!

I had never heard of the Aviation Research Society before I decided to enroll, but once I enrolled I found a great place to belong.
There are many things you can learn at university, but I believe that club activities provide experiences that are hard to get anywhere else.

There are many clubs at TUAT, each with their own unique appeal in terms of the activities they carry out and the atmosphere among their members.
Once you have decided to enroll in TUAT, be sure to look for a club that suits you.
Of course, you are also welcome to join the Aviation Research Club!

(Published on February 28, 2022)