© 2023 JETIR April 2023, Volume 10, Issue 4 www.jetir.
org (ISSN-2349-5162)
AVIONICS SYSTEM FOR MODEL ROCKET
1
J. Siva Lakshmana Reddy, 2 A. Hema Siva Teja, 3 K. Geetha Vinay, 4G. Naga Vinay Teja
1
Student, 2Student, 3Student, 4Student
1
Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering,
1
R.V.R. & J.C. College of Engineering, Guntur, India
Abstract: The purpose of this project is to develop a fully functional prototype of an avionics subsystem for a model rocket. The
subsystem will include a flight computer, sensors for measuring altitude and airspeed, and a GPS receiver for determining the
rocket's location. The system will be designed to be lightweight and compact, with a user-friendly interface for monitoring and
controlling the rocket's flight. The prototype will be tested through a series of ground and flight tests to evaluate its performance
and reliability. The ultimate goal of this project is to create a cost-effective and reliable avionics subsystem that can be used in
model rockets for hobbyists and educational institutions.
Index Terms - I2C, SPI, UART, NMEA, Pyro-charge
I. INTRODUCTION
In recent years, model rocketry has become a popular hobby and educational tool for individuals and institutions interested in
aerospace engineering. However, the traditional model rocketry only relies on the rocket's design and construction to achieve
successful flights, which can be limited in terms of altitude and flight duration. To overcome these limitations and enhance the
capabilities of model rockets, an avionics subsystem can be integrated into the rocket to provide additional functionality such as GPS
tracking, sensor data collection, and flight control.
II. PLAN OF ACTION
A. Iteration-1 (Proof of Concept Model Rocket):
Use Arduino Nano Microcontroller. Interface Barometric Pressure sensor [BMP180]. Interface Micro SD card Module. Read
Altimeter data, Store in SD card, and Recover in Post flight analysis.
B. Iteration-2 (Low-Powered Model Rocket: Apogee of 300m):
Use Arduino Nano Microcontroller or better. Interface IMU[MPU6050], GPS[NEO-M8N], NRF24L01 transceiver & Micro SD
card Modules retaining BMP180. Store sensor data in an SD card & Recover in Post flight analysis. Fire a Pyro-charge (Parachute
at Apogee). Transmit Sensor data to the ground station & Maintain Telemetry Link whole through the flight.
C. Iteration-3 (High-Powered Model Rocket: Apogee of 3000m):
Over Iteration-2, use Arduino Nano Microcontroller or better. Implement Thrust Vector Controlling for the motor.
III. ITERATION-2
A. Interfacing IMU[MPU6050] with Arduino Nano:
MPU6050 sensor module is a complete 6-axis Motion Tracking Device with an I2C bus interface
to communicate with the microcontroller. It combines a three-axis MEMS (Micro Electro-
mechanical system) accelerometer and three-axis MEMS gyroscope and a Digital Motion
Processor which includes a built-in 16-bit AD converter all in a small package. Also, it has an
additional feature of the on-chip Temperature sensor. Adafruit_MPU6050 Library by Adafruit is
used to initiate and interface the MPU6050 sensor with Arduino.
B. Interfacing GPS[NEO-M8N] with Arduino Nano:
The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a space-based satellite navigation system that provides location and time information in
all weather conditions, anywhere on or near the Earth where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites.
GPS is a system of 30+ navigation satellites orbiting the Earth. A GPS module knows where they are in space because they
constantly transmit information about their position and current time to Earth in the form of radio signals. A GPS receiver listens
to these signals. Once the receiver calculates its distance from at least three GPS satellites, it can figure out where you are. This
process is known as Trilateration.
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© 2023 JETIR April 2023, Volume 10, Issue 4 www.jetir.org (ISSN-2349-5162)
Figure 1: Trilateration (GISGeography, 2021) https://gisgeography.com/trilateration-triangulation-gps/
By transmitting and receiving NMEA messages, GPS devices can exchange information with other navigation or mapping
equipment, allowing for accurate tracking and navigation. NMEA (National Marine Electronics Association) messages are a
standardized format for transmitting data between GPS (Global Positioning System) devices and other navigation or mapping
equipment. These messages are designed to be easily interpreted by computers and other electronic devices. There are several
types of NMEA messages, each with its unique format and content. Some of the most commonly used NMEA messages in GPS
include:
1) GGA (Global Positioning System Fix Data): This message provides essential information about the GPS receiver's
position, time, and satellite data.
2) RMC (Recommended Minimum Navigation Information): This message contains the GPS receiver's current
position, speed, and heading.
3) VTG (Course Over Ground and Ground Speed): This message provides information about the GPS receiver's current
course over ground and ground speed.
4) GSA (GPS DOP and Active Satellites): This message provides information about the number of satellites being
used for navigation and the Dilution of Precision (DOP) values, which indicate the accuracy of the GPS receiver's
position.
5) GSV (Satellites in View): This message provides information about the satellites visible to the GPS receiver,
including their identification numbers, elevation, and azimuth.
6) GLL (Geographic Latitude and Longitude): This message is used to report the geographic position of the GPS
receiver, specifically the latitude and longitude coordinates.
A patch antenna is connected to the GPS NEO-M8N module by mounting it to the U.FL mounting hole through the U.FL cable.
It communicates with the microcontroller over the UART. One of the best features offered by the chip is Power Save Mode
(PSM). This allows a reduction in system power consumption by selectively switching certain parts of the receiver on and off.
C. Interfacing Barometric Pressure Sensor [BMP180] with Arduino Nano:
The BMP180 Breakout is a barometric pressure sensor with an I2C ("Wire") interface.
Barometric pressure sensors measure the absolute pressure of the air around them. This pressure
varies with both the weather and altitude. Since pressure varies with altitude, you can use a
pressure sensor to measure altitude (with a few caveats). The average pressure of the
atmosphere at sea level is 1013.25 hPa (or bar). Altitude can be computed using the difference
between two pressure measurements (p and p0) by using this equation:
1
𝑝 5.255
Altitude = 44330 ∗ (1 − (𝑝 ) )
0
Adafruit_BMP085 Library by Adafruit was written to hide away all the complexities to calculate the temperature, barometric
pressure, and altitude data. BMP180 is used as a backup sensor for recording altitude in case of GPS malfunctioning.
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© 2023 JETIR April 2023, Volume 10, Issue 4 www.jetir.org (ISSN-2349-5162)
D. Interfacing Micro SD Card Module with Arduino Nano:
Micro SD Card Reader Module has an SPI interface that is compatible with any SD card and it
uses a 5V or 3.3V power supply which is compatible with Arduino Nano. SD module has various
applications such as data logger, audio, video, and graphics.
Chip Select (CS) pin is chosen to match the SD shield (or) module based on the library utilized.
i) Arduino Ethernet shield: pin 4
ii) Adafruit SD shields and modules: pin 10
iii) Sparkfun SD shield: pin 8
iv) MKRZero SD: SDCARD_SS_PIN
E. Interfacing NRF24L01 + PA/LNA Module with Arduino Nano:
The nRF24L01+ module is designed to operate in the 2.4 GHz worldwide ISM frequency band and
uses GFSK modulation for data transmission. The nRF24L01+ communicates over a 4-pin SPI with
a maximum data rate of 10Mbps. For two or more modules to communicate with each other, they
must be on the same channel. This channel can have any frequency in the 2.4 GHz ISM band, or
more precisely, any frequency between 2.400 and 2.525 GHz (2400 to 2525 MHz). Each channel
takes up less than 1 MHz of bandwidth. This gives us 125 possible channels with a 1MHz spacing.
This means that the nRF24L01+ can operate on 125 different channels, allowing you to build a
network of 125 independently operating modems in one location.
The NRF24L01 + PA/LNA Module has an SMA connector and a duck antenna and includes an RFX2401C range extender chip
that combines PA, LNA, and transmit-receive switching circuitry. This enables the module to achieve a significantly greater
transmission range of up to 1000 meters. RF24 Library by TMRh20 library is used to facilitate communication between two such
modules.
IV. IMPLEMENTATION
A. Rocket Design:
In general, model rockets are built up of simple materials such as wood, PVC, carbon fiber, plastics, and many other
lightweight composite materials. Parts of the model rocket include a nose cone, avionics bay or payload tube, recovery system,
parachute tube, booster tube, and fins.
1) Nose Cone helps improve flight performance by
reducing aerodynamic drag.
2) Body Tube is the main body of the model rocket and
holds the nose cone in place as well as the fins at the
bottom. The launch lug is attached to the body tube.
3) Fins help with the model rockets’ stability.
4) Launch Lug provides stability for a model rocket
before and during lift-off by forcing the rocket to
remain parallel to the launch rod during the first
seconds.
5) Shock Cord holds the parts of the rocket together
after they separate at ejection. The shock cord may
be made of an elastic material to help absorb the
shock, or it could be made from a non-elastic line.
Figure 2: Parts of Model Rocket (Tom Benson, 2021).
Typical materials for shock cards are sewing elastic, https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/rocket/rktparts
rubber, nylon, and Kevlar.
6) Recovery wadding is inserted between the engine mount and the recovery system to prevent the hot gas of the
ejection charge from damaging the recovery system. Wadding provides a way to protect the recovery charge from
the engine and the parachute. With the main purpose of preventing damage to your rocket, the recovery wadding is
fireproof paper.
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© 2023 JETIR April 2023, Volume 10, Issue 4 www.jetir.org (ISSN-2349-5162)
Figure 3: Recovery Wadding (Estes Model Rocket Parts) https://www.amazon.com/Estes-Phantom-Blue-Model-Rocket/dp/B00DWSPFZC
Each subsystem directly controls the weight and size of the model rocket. One such subsystem we look forward to here is the
avionics subsystem. Thus, this subsystem is designed in an optimal way such that the rocket can be designed to have possible
minimalistic weight-dimensions combinations. This cuts any expenses that incur in the process of hovering this extra weight in
the air.
B. Avionics System:
i) This system consists of several sensors, namely, MPU6050, GPS NEO-M8N, BMP180, 433MHz RF transceiver &
Micro SD card Modules interfaced with Arduino Nano Microcontroller at the core.
ii) Various crucial parameters including velocity, acceleration, distance from the ground station, height, and location on
Earth are computed through different sensors set up in the system.
iii) This sensor data is stored in SD Card while the same is transmitted to the ground station over Telemetry Link throughout
the time of flight.
Figure 4: Avionics System for Model Rocket
The components in the system are re-routed to have been implanted in a PCB of the least possible size, leaving no option other
than a multi-layer (here, two-layer) PCB design.
V. TESTING
Low-Powered Model Rocket: Apogee=300m
i) A PCB is designed for optimizing the entire setup which is then inserted into the model rocket for testing.
ii) Pyro-charge (Parachute) is fired at the apogee of 300m.
iii) After the successful recovery of the system, the sensor data stored in the SD Card is retrieved for post-flight analysis.
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© 2023 JETIR April 2023, Volume 10, Issue 4 www.jetir.org (ISSN-2349-5162)
Figure 5: Flight of a Model Rocket (Tom Benson, 2021). https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/rocket/rktflight
VI. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The following images initialization and working of NRF24L01 and SD Card modules:
Figure 6: Initialization of NRF24L01
If not mentioned particularly, the NRF24L01 module uses channel 76 (out of 256) for communicating with the ground station.
Figure 7: Sensor data stored in SD Card for post-flight analysis
These snapshots demonstrate the operation of the avionics subsystem is as intended.
VII. CONCLUSION
The ultimate goal of this project is to create a cost-effective and reliable avionics subsystem that can be used in model rockets by
hobbyists and educational institutions. This subsystem will not only enhance the capabilities of model rockets but also provide a
valuable learning opportunity for individuals interested in aerospace engineering.
VIII. REFERENCES
[1] Designing Your Own Model Rocket, D. Mark Ponder
[2] Design and Integration of a High-Powered Model Rocket-I, Amanda Dings. Colin Yuen-Lim Cooper, Eve Marie George, Jacob
Hance Fennick, Kyle Francis Foster, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 2019
[3] Design and Integration of a High-Powered Model Rocket-II, Alexander Alvarez, Grace Gerhardt, Evan Kelly, John O’Neill,
Jackson Whitehouse, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 2019
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[4] Design and Integration of a High-Powered Model Rocket – III, Connor Mcmahon Murphy, Jean Patrick Furter, Justin Tavare,
Mason Douglas Handy, Nicholas Jordan Songe, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 2019
[5] Arduino Coding Basics – Javatpoint: https://www.javatpoint.com/arduino-coding-basics
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