Simulating missions before flight in Drone Programming - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ Predict Output

intermediate

Output of mission simulation with waypoint delays

What is the output of this drone mission simulation code snippet?

Drone Programming

mission = ['takeoff', 'waypoint1', 'waypoint2', 'land']
results = []
for step in mission:
    if step == 'takeoff':
        results.append('Taking off')
    elif step.startswith('waypoint'):
        results.append(f'Reached {step}')
    elif step == 'land':
        results.append('Landing')
print(results)

A ['Taking off', 'Reached waypoint1', 'Landing']

B ['Taking off', 'waypoint1', 'waypoint2', 'Landing']

C ['Taking off', 'Reached waypoint1', 'Reached waypoint2', 'Landing']

D ['takeoff', 'Reached waypoint1', 'Reached waypoint2', 'land']

💡 Hint

Look at how each mission step is checked and what is appended to results.

The code checks each step and appends a descriptive string. For waypoints, it appends 'Reached' plus the waypoint name. So all steps are converted accordingly.

🧠 Conceptual

intermediate

Understanding simulation state updates

In a drone mission simulation, why is it important to update the drone's position state after each waypoint?

A To avoid logging any mission data

B To ensure the drone's battery level is reset after each waypoint

C To speed up the simulation by skipping waypoints

D To keep track of the drone's current location for accurate navigation and safety checks

💡 Hint

Think about what position information helps with during flight.

Updating position state allows the simulation to know where the drone is, which is essential for navigation, avoiding obstacles, and ensuring the mission follows the planned path.

🔧 Debug

advanced

Identify the error in mission simulation loop

What error will this mission simulation code produce when run?

Drone Programming

mission = ['takeoff', 'waypoint1', 'land']
for step in mission:
    if step == 'takeoff':
        print('Taking off')
    elif step.startswith('waypoint'):
        print(f'Reached {step}')
    elif step == 'land':
        print('Landing')

A SyntaxError due to incorrect assignment operator in if condition

B NameError because 'mission' is not defined

C TypeError because 'step' is not a string

D No error, prints all steps correctly

💡 Hint

Check the if condition syntax carefully.

The if condition uses '=' which is assignment, not comparison. This causes a SyntaxError in Python.

📝 Syntax

advanced

Correct dictionary comprehension for mission status

Which option correctly creates a dictionary mapping each waypoint to its status 'pending' in a mission list?

Drone Programming

mission = ['takeoff', 'waypoint1', 'waypoint2', 'land']

A {wp: 'pending' for wp in mission if wp.startswith('waypoint')}

B {wp: 'pending' if wp.startswith('waypoint') for wp in mission}

C {wp: 'pending' for wp in mission if wp == 'waypoint'}

D {wp: 'pending' for wp in mission where wp.startswith('waypoint')}

💡 Hint

Remember the syntax for dictionary comprehensions with conditions.

Option A uses correct syntax: {key: value for item in iterable if condition}. Others have syntax errors or wrong conditions.

🚀 Application

expert

Calculate total mission duration from simulation data

Given this simulation log of mission steps with durations in seconds, what is the total mission time?

Drone Programming

simulation_log = [
  {'step': 'takeoff', 'duration': 5},
  {'step': 'waypoint1', 'duration': 10},
  {'step': 'waypoint2', 'duration': 15},
  {'step': 'land', 'duration': 7}
]
total_time = sum(entry['duration'] for entry in simulation_log)
print(total_time)

A 35

B 37

C 40

D 30

💡 Hint

Add all durations from each step in the log.

Sum of durations: 5 + 10 + 15 + 7 = 37 seconds total mission time.