Stop to long walks to recover your rocket.

The "ChuteRelease" is a very clever electronic device: it contains an altimeter and an actuator. After the parachute has been ejected (by motor ejection), when the rocket falls to an altitude predetermined by you the actuator releases the parachute which fully opens for a soft landing.
It is a totally non-pyro device, very safe, and can be used in mid-power rockets as well. Imagine to turn your standard, single deployment rocket into a dual recovery. It means you can fly it higher in smaller fields.

The Chute Release does not need an electronic bay. It is tied on the parachute itself and the two are ejected together by motor ejection or other methods. The parachute stays folded until reaching the altitude you decided, then a pin is released, attached to an elastic band which keep the parachute closed. The parachute can now unfurl and slow the descent.
Everything is included in the device: the altimeter, the battery, the altitude LED display, the programming buttons and even a battery charge readout. Battery is recharged with any standard USB port, from your computer or your cell phone charger. Even the charging cable is included.

Using the Chute Release is very simple: set the altitude you want the parachute to open by depressing either buttons on the device, depending whether you want to increase or decrease the altitude. The altitude scale is either in feet and in meters, and you can set it in 30 meters steps.
Attach the Chute Release to the parachute riser or the shock cord with the tether included. Fold your parachute as usual then wrap the elastic band around it to keep it closed, and plug the releasing pin in the Chute Release. That's it.

The device can fit a 40 mm tube as a minimum, but we suggest to use it in 54 mm rockets as practical minimum, to allow some space for the parachute protector and to get sure the chute will be ejected easily.
The parachute must be protected as usual. A Nomex protection is recommended as a minimum, as it will protect the whole parachute+ChuteRelease pack. A piston is even better. The parachute compartment must have a small vent hole to allow the altimeter to read the air pressure.

When to use this device?

The Chute Release is very useful to recover your rocket close to the launch pad. Although it is not a classical dual recovery, the result is the same. You can use it in any standard rocket with a diameter over 40 mm (not less than 45 mm) without modification. As it stays attached to the parachute, it is placed in the same space.

At apogee, the parachute is ejected by the motor charge together with the Chute release tied to it. The Chute Release keeps it closed while it bounces all around in the air. Although the rocket falls rapidly, it is slowed down by the parachute package and the separated nosecone. In this flight phase the folded parachutes acts as a drogue chute in a classic dual recovery system,

When the Chute Release lets the parachute free to open, the rocket is slowed down to the final landing speed. Therefore, you can have a sort of dual recovery without any complicated electronic bay, ignitor, ejection charge canisters, black powder, etc.
You can now launch your rockets higher, with a more powerful motor and in a smaller field.

The device is very small, and made of a very strong plastic. It is very easy to use as the programming is made by only two buttons (altitude increase/altitude decrease) and the altitude readout is via a LED display. There is also a test function.

The altimeter is accurate, but do not expect to have an altitude readout: it is intended to activate the release only. Have a separate altimeter in your rocket if you want to know the altitude it reached. The Chute Release must be protected from ejection gases. Wrap it in the Nomex chute protector (not included) together with the parachute.

An important warning: do not attach any load to the release pin. It is not made to bear heavy loads, just the little pull of the elastic band that keeps the parachute closed.

Finally, you can link two Chute Release in “series” (daisy-chain) for redundancy.

• Minimum Altitude for it to work: Use only on flights higher than 60 meters above ground level

• Release altitudes: 30, 60, 90, 120, 150, 180, 210, 240, 300 meters

• Rocket requirements: Requires the use of motor-ejection, and sufficient space for Chute Release and parachute (at least 41.6mm diameter tube - also known as a BT-60 size tube).

• Battery: The enclosed Li-Po battery recharges in any USB port.