I am designing and creating a RC Car from scratch.

The plan is to use SolidWorks to design the car, 3D print as much as I can (will probably have to purchase the electrical parts), and learn PCB and Altium, electrical/electronics, etc. as I go.

*This project is currently in the eary early stages of development... more details and pictures will be added soon!*

Step 1: Idea

Before/while I design the initial car, I need to know what I want to do and then what I need. Obviously I'll need motors, wheels, a battery, a way to remotely control everything, and a body to hold it all together. But what type of motor? Two should be enough (im thinking a small DC motor for driving and a servo for steering), but which ones? And how do I control them? Maybe some sort of motor controller and microcontroller. Maybe Raspberry Pi? I'll need to look into and learn more about them. And then the wheels. We can figure out the size and type later, but how do I connect them to the motor? If I add independent suspension (suspension shouldnt be too hard to mount, but where should I get them from?), a simple axle wont work. I need something that can spin with the motor but also move up and down with the suspension. Perhaps a CV joint. Same goes for steering. Maybe a heim joint for steering. The next question is, can I 3D print them? How? or is it easier to buy them off the shelf. The control system shouldnt be too hard. My first thought was to use regular radio receivers and transmitters like commercial RC cars. But thats not very fun. I want to add a camera and stream/drive at the same time. Like a video game. This may need a Raspberry Pi for wifi. Might need to make a website or app too. If latency is a big issue, I may need to go back to radio. Perhaps I'll use radio transmitters/receivers for driving and connect a screen via wifi separately (should I add a screen to the controller? or just connect my phone?).

Step 2: Research and Planning

Now that I have a general idea of what I want to do, I need to research and plan out the details.