Building Advanced Rocketry Systems: From LoRa Networks to Active Drag Control

Building Advanced Rocketry Systems: From LoRa Networks to Active Drag Control

rocketry embedded-systems rust swift lora telemetry

For nearly three years, I’ve been a Software Engineer with Rocketry at Virginia Tech, where I’ve had the opportunity to work with some amazing people on a competitive design team. From developing the team’s website to creating sophisticated telemetry systems, this experience has been instrumental in shaping my engineering expertise.

Team Website Development

One of my first major contributions was creating the Rocketry at Virginia Tech website using Astro. This project not only served the team’s communication needs but also gave me valuable experience with modern web development frameworks.

2025 Payload and Telemetry Lead

As the current Payload and Telemetry Lead, I’m responsible for overseeing critical mission systems that ensure successful rocket flights and data collection.

LoRa Mesh Network Development

The Challenge

Traditional rocket telemetry systems can suffer from single points of failure. To address this, I designed a robust data layer mesh network using Listen Before Talk (LBT) protocol with exponential backoff.

Technical Implementation

  • Protocol: Listen Before Talk with exponential backoff
  • Hardware: LoRa radios for long-range, low-power communication
  • Architecture: Mesh network topology for redundancy
  • Result: Reliable telemetry even when individual nodes fail

Multi-Platform Development

Rust-Based Payload Systems

I designed payload systems using Rust and the Embassy freamwork that incorporate:

  • Multiple IMUs for noise reduction through sensor fusion
  • Redundant telemetry via both traditional radios and LoRa radios
  • Real-time data processing for flight-critical decisions

iOS Application Development

Using Swift, I developed an iOS application that:

  • Connects via Bluetooth to LoRa radios
  • Sends and receives GPS coordinates from other network nodes
  • Integrates with the connected phone’s GPS
  • Provides real-time visualization

Active Drag System

Currently advancing development on our Active Drag System for precise altitude control:

  • Language: C++
  • Hardware: RP2040 microcontroller
  • Purpose: Real-time altitude control during flight
  • Impact: Higher precision in reaching target altitudes, improving our competition performance

Embedded Systems Expertise

Custom Driver Development

I’ve developed comprehensive drivers in both C and Rust for the RP2040:

  • PWM Servos: For actuator control
  • IMUs: For attitude and acceleration sensing
  • UBLOX GPS: For positioning data
  • Barometers: For altitude measurements
  • SPI Flash: For data logging

Signal Processing

Developing a Kalman Filter to improve the accuracy of:

  • Altitude measurements
  • Attitude data
  • Sensor fusion from multiple sources

Hardware Integration

Flexible PCB Antennas

Integrated flexible PCB GPS and LoRa antennas directly onto carbon fiber booster sections:

  • Real-time updates of flap deployment angles
  • Redundant GPS positioning for backup navigation
  • Seamless integration with existing rocket structure

Impact and Applications

These projects demonstrate practical applications of:

  • Distributed systems in aerospace environments
  • Real-time embedded programming for safety-critical applications
  • Multi-platform development spanning mobile, embedded, and web technologies
  • Advanced signal processing for noisy aerospace environments

The work at Rocketry at Virginia Tech has provided invaluable hands-on experience with systems that must work reliably under extreme conditions, preparing me for the challenges of modern aerospace and embedded systems engineering.

← Back to Posts