SPRING SEMESTER 2023 APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED
Are you an EPFL student and looking for a semester credited, Bachelors or Masters Project ? Look no further! We have something for you!
If you can’t find your dream project down here, but have an idea or would like to suggest your own project to do with us, we are open to suggestions! Feel free to contact us and we can talk about it.
SPRING SEMESTER 2023
COMPETITON PROJECT
RECOVERY
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The EPFL Rocket Team wants to test its electronics hardware in a simulated flight environment. Toward this objective, a vacuum centrifuge was designed to simulate the
pressure and acceleration changesoccuring during the flight of a rocket.
In this project, you will work with the designer of this centrifuge in the Recovery (RE) subsystem and the Flight Dynamics (FD) subsystem in order to implement a regulation and Human Machine Interface for the aforementioned apparatus.
On this test bench are three motors and controllers, one accelerometer and a barometer. Your goal will be to follow pressure and positive acceleration profiles given by the FD subsystem in order to
simulate the environment of a predefined trajectory.
The expected outcome of this project is to develop a human machine interface for this centrifuge, as well as a regulation algorithm to be able to match the pressure and acceleration asked for by the user.
PROJECT UNFOLDING:
● [2 weeks]: Concept understanding
● [6 weeks]: Regulation
● [4 weeks]: Human Machine Interface Design
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn):
● Programming
● Regulation
● (Physics)
Contact: alexandre.chappuis@epflrocketteam.ch
Supervisor: TBD
Number of students: 0/1
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The EPFL Rocket Team has set itself the goal to reach space by 2027. The team would like to recover the launch vehicle, or at least to recover the payload depending on the mission. For this objective to be satisfied, it might be needed to develop a supersonic parachute to slow the rocket during its reentry from space. For the future teams to have all the options on the table, a preliminary study is required to ensure that the option to deploy a parachute at a lower altitude at a compressible velocity, meaning above Mach 1, is feasible.
The objective of the project is to gain knowledge in supersonic parachutes. It will consist of reading some documentation to find the appropriate material, find the maximal Mach number at which a deployment is possible and the different constraints to obtain a preliminary design for a given preliminary rocket. It would be also needed to develop a model to size any supersonic parachute according to the need of the future teams.
PROJECT UNFOLDING:
● [3 weeks]: Documentation
● [6 weeks]: Model Writing
● [5 weeks]: Preliminary Design
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn):
● Compressible Flows
● Matlab, Python
● Parachute Knowledge
Contact: alexandre.chappuis@epflrocketteam.ch
Supervisor: TBD
Number of students: 0/1
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
In rocketry, the rocket is recovered using parachutes. Two parachutes are usually used, one small called “Drogue” deployed at the apogee and a big parachute called “Main” deployed closer to the ground often around 400m of altitude. This allows to recover the rocket close to the launch site and ease ground recovery operations.
Currently, the EPFL Rocket Team is developing another method to recover the rocket using a reefed parachute. It consists of one parachute which canopy changes shape during the descent, varying the descent velocity.
To fully deploy the parachute, a rope has to be cut at the right time. There is a system, either below the parachute or inside the rocket, measuring the altitude and triggering the full deployment. Currently, it is done using a cable going from the rocket to the parachute, which is not an optimal solution as the cable could be ripped or destroyed during the deployment for example.
The goal of the project is to develop a system able to trigger the deployment of the parachute without using any electrical cables, meaning a stand-alone system at the parachute or a reliable wireless system to transmit the signal from the rocket. The objective is to have a fully functional system by the end of the semester, which has been tested through a rocket launch or a drone test. This system could be implemented in the 2024 main competition rocket.
PROJECT UNFOLDING:
● [2 weeks]: Documentation
● [5 weeks]: Design of the system
● [4 weeks]: Building of the system
● [3 weeks]: Testing
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn):
● Programming
● Electronics
● PCB Design
Contact: alexandre.chappuis@epflrocketteam.ch
Supervisor: TBD
Number of students: 0/1
STRUCTURE
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Bi-liquid high performance rockets often use liquid oxygen as oxidizer. It needs to be kept at a low temperature to avoid vaporizing inside the rocket’s tank.
In this project, you’ll work with the ST subsystem to design a propellant tank’s system capable of isolating the oxidizer from the environment and from the rocket’s other subsystems. This design is intended to fly on our 2023-2024 competition rocket.
This project is in the continuation of a previous semester project, researching on cryogenic tank designs.
PROJECT UNFOLDING:
● [3 weeks]: Documentation
● [8 weeks]: Design
● [3 weeks]: Design Wrap up
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn):
● Mechanical understanding
● Thermodynamics
Contacts: antoine.marchand@epfl.ch
Supervisor: TBD
Number of students: 0/2
FLIGHT DYNAMICS
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Wind tunnels are used to simulate aerodynamic effects that would affect an object. To do so, a flow of gas is accelerated from a rest state to a velocity simulating the one the object will experiment during its movement.
Supersonic wind tunnels are rare in Switzerland (and in Europe). For this reason, the EPFL Rocket Team decided to build one in-house. A first feasibility study was performed in the Spring semester 2022.
The goal of this project is to work on a second iteration of the wind tunnel’s design taking into account practical considerations. Several improvements should be implemented so that the flow of air through the tunnel is as representative as possible as the one the rocket will face during its flight. Moreover, the data retrieved from tests in the tunnel should be as accurate as possible.
PROJECT UNFOLDING:
● [4 weeks]: General research
● [5 weeks]: Improvement of current design
● [3 weeks]: Implementation of new elements
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn):
● Fluid Mechanics (compressible flows)
● CFD Simulations
Contact: theodore.maradan@epfl.ch
Supervisor: TBD
Number of students: 0/1
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Fin flutter is an aeroelastic instability which can affect fins in certain flight regimes. This phenomenon occurs when the structure in question reacts to a deformation caused by aerodynamic loads, ultimately creating an oscillation. This oscillation can reach critical levels leading to fracture or instability. Moreover, the aerodynamic properties of the fin are altered by its oscillatory movement.
For the reasons stated above, it is critical for us as a team to make sure that the fins used on the competition’s rocket are designed in such a way to avoid fin flutter, as it would result in a complete mission failure and could be dangerous for
operators during launch.
The goal of this project is to establish a methodology to investigate fin flutter and apply it to an existing set of fins.
PROJECT UNFOLDING:
● [3 weeks]: Familiarization with the phenomenon
● [8 weeks]: Methodology definition
● [3 weeks]: Application of the methodology
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn):
● Fluid Mechanics (Aerodynamics)
● Simulations (CFD, FEA)
● Structural Mechanics
Contact: theodore.maradan@epfl.ch
Supervisor: TBD
Number of students: 0/1
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Attitude control is the process of controlling the orientation of the rocket during its flight. Until now, only passive attitude control has been implemented on the competition’s rocket by the use of fins. However, such elements show their limits in certain flight regimes where phenomenons such as pitch-yaw-roll coupling may appear.
The long term goal of the team is to send a rocket into space. In this context, the development of active attitude control elements for future rockets is essential for the team.
The goal of this project is to design active attitude control elements and their implementation in an experimental rocket. Sensors will have to be chosen to detect the apparition of dynamical instabilities during the flight. The active attitude
control systems should, then, be able to correct it. This project will focus on aerodynamic attitude correction methods.
PROJECT UNFOLDING:
● [3 weeks]: Research about attitude control
● [4 weeks]: Choice of sensors
● [7 weeks]: Design of active attitude control elements
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn):
● Mechanical Design
● Aerodynamics
● Control
Contact: theodore.maradan@epfl.ch
Supervisor: TBD
Number of students: 0/1
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Wind tunnels are used to simulate aerodynamic effects that would affect an object. To do so, a flow of gas is accelerated from a rest state to a velocity simulating the one the object will experience during its movement.
During the design of the competition’s rocket, the EPFL Rocket Team relies heavily on simulations (structural & aerodynamic). Indeed, the launch windows are limited in Switzerland.
The association is sponsored by Sauber Group and, in this context, has the opportunity to perform a Wind Tunnel Test in their facilities. Given the timeline and the data it hopes to collect from this test, the Rocket Team is looking for 1 or 2 students working on a full-scale mock-up of this year’s rocket that will be tested in Sauber’s facility.
The students taking part in this project should also provide an analysis of the data given by Sauber Group after the Wind Tunnel Test.
PROJECT UNFOLDING:
● [2 weeks]: Familiarization with the design of this year’s rocket and Sauber Group’s requirements
● [4 weeks]: Mock-up Design
● [6 weeks]: Mock-up Manufacturing
● [2 weeks]: Data Analysis
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn):
● Mechanical Design
● Aerodynamics
● Control
Contact: theodore.maradan@epfl.ch
Supervisor: TBD
Number of students: 0/1-2
IMPORTANT NOTE : THIS IS A GM BACHELOR PROJECT
This project cannot be taken as a regular Master semester project.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Bi-Liquid Rocket engine cooling defines the runtime of the engine, thus it impacts the overall performance of the rocket that the engine is mounted on. On our upcoming competition rocket the engine cooling relies only on thermal absorption, limiting the engine runtime.
Since our competition sounding rockets fly mainly inside the lower parts of the atmosphere, ambient air might be a good solution to passively cool the combustion chamber of the engine.
While cooling the combustion chamber, the system shall minimize drag using aerodynamic effects.
The goal of this project is to study the feasibility and theoretical efficiency of such a cooling device for our upcoming competition rockets equipped with bi-liquid engines.
PROJECT UNFOLDING:
● [3 weeks]: Familiarization with the phenomenon
● [4 weeks]: Methodology definition
● [7 weeks]: Application of the methodology
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn):
● Fluid Mechanics (Aerodynamics)
● Simulations (CFD, FEA)
Contact: antoine.marchand@epfl.ch
Supervisor: TBD
Number of students: 1/3
PAYLOAD
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Project Nordend’s payload is a plasma in a liquid experiment, studying how streamer plasmas in water behave when in contact with quasi-static air bubbles in near zero gravity. In such a context, a reliable, light, small-size and electrically safe high voltage pulsed power supply is needed.
In this project, you will work with the payload subsystem to develop such a product. The input voltage will be a 15V high performance LiPo battery, capable of delivering up to 78A, and the output should be of 30 kV. The output will have the form of a PWM signal with a 1 microsecond on-time for a 1 millisecond off time, or equivalently with a 0.1% duty cycle at 1kHz.
Here are some problems that will have to be solved:
● Measuring the output voltage.
● Dealing with heat ; the circuit must be able to be turned on for up to a minute without excessive heating
● Having an electrical insulation between the low-voltage and high-voltage parts
● (Optional) The circuit must be able to turn itself off extremely fast (< 1 microsecond).
PROJECT UNFOLDING
● [4 weeks]: Documentation
● [4 weeks]: Design
● [4 weeks]: Testing
● [2 weeks]: Integration in the Payload
SKILLS NEEDED (or willing to learn)
● Power Electronics
● High Voltage Electronics
Contact: pierre.sintre@epfl.ch
Supervisor: Prof. Dujic
Number of students: 0/2
RESEARCH PROJECTS
ICARUS
MOTIVATION
The EPFL Rocket Team aims for building thrust-vector-controlled rockets that can be reused by controlling them to land upright at a specific location. We develop algorithms that guide and control the rocket during the descent phase, approach, and touchdown.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
In this project, we look into the planning of descent trajectories, i.e., how to get from the apogee (highest point of flight) to the desired landing location: When should the engine be re-ignited? What control algorithm stabilizes the rocket motion? Should there be active or passive aerodynamic control surfaces?
The ideal outcome of the project is a complete strategy for descent including the implementation of optimal guidance and control algorithms and testing in simulation. Results of this project might even affect the mechanical design of the next rocket.
SKILLS NEEDED
- Optimal Control (MPC)
- Knowledge about flight mechanics/reference frames is a plus
- Experience in C++ and coding projects is a plus
- Familiarity with ROS (robot operating system) is a plus
Contact: Icarus@epflrocketteam.ch
Supervisor: Laboratoire d’Automatique (Johannes Waibel)
Number of students: 0/1
MOTIVATION
The EPFL Rocket Team aims for building thrust-vector-controlled rockets that can be reused by controlling them to land upright at a specific location. We develop algorithms that guide and control the rocket during the descent phase, approach, and touchdown.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
In this project, we would like to develop algorithms for safely adapting drone and rocket controllers online, i.e., while they are flying. This may involve classical & optimal control methods, or machine learning. Another approach is to conduct online identification, i.e., improve a model of the system, and use the identified model to derive controllers.
The ideal outcome of the project is a reliable tuning procedure that is thorougly tested in simulation and experimentally on a rocket-like drone. The resulting algorithm could later be applied to a 50kg hopper with a rocket engine.
SKILLS NEEDED (or that you are willing to learn)
- Classical and/or Optimal Control (MPC)
- Experience with Machine Learning methods is a plus
- Experience in C++ and coding projects is a plus
- Familiarity with ROS (robot operating system) is a plus
Contact: Icarus@epflrocketteam.ch
Supervisor: Laboratoire d’Automatique (Johannes Waibel)
Number of students: 0/1
MOTIVATION
The EPFL Rocket Team aims for building thrust-vector-controlled rockets that can be reused by controlling them to land upright at a specific location. We develop algorithms that guide and control the rocket during the descent phase, approach, and touchdown.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
In this project, we would like to develop algorithms for safely adapting drone and rocket controllers online, i.e., while they are flying. This may involve classical & optimal control methods, or machine learning. Another approach is to conduct online identification, i.e., improve a model of the system, and use the identified model to derive controllers.
The ideal outcome of the project is a reliable tuning procedure that is thorougly tested in simulation and experimentally on a rocket-like drone. The resulting algorithm could later be applied to a 50kg hopper with a rocket engine.
SKILLS NEEDED (or that you are willing to learn)
- Classical and/or Optimal Control (MPC)
- Experience with Machine Learning methods is a plus
- Experience in C++ and coding projects is a plus
- Familiarity with ROS (robot operating system) is a plus
Contact: Icarus@epflrocketteam.ch
Supervisor: Laboratoire d’Automatique (Johannes Waibel)
Number of students: 0/1
MOTIVATION
The EPFL Rocket Team aims to build thrust-vector-controlled rockets that can be reused by controlling them to propulsively land. We develop our own Hopper style rocket featuring a gimbal module to direct the engine’s thrust. A first version of this module has been developed and is currently in manufacturing.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
In this project, we would like to finish the manufacturing process and test our gimbal mechanism in order to characterize the performance of the mechanism and gradually upgrade it. This may involve manufacturing some of the part yourself, contact suppliers and professional workshops, as well as working on the electronics to communicate with the actuator and test the behavior. This project will be further refined as the testing process move forward and the student is expected to progressively upgrade the mechanism based on the lessons learned.
The ideal outcome of the project is a reliable and well characterized mechanism that has been upgraded with the least bottlenecks as possible. The resulting mechanism could later be used in a static fire of a 1kN rocket engine. The student is asked to commit to the EPFL rocket team for the entire year.
Static Fire of our previous Engine.
SKILLS NEEDED (or that you are willing to learn)
- Proeficiency in computer-aided design [CAD] (Solidworks).
- Previous experiences in leading the design , manufacturing and testing of a product.
- Experience in C++ and coding projects is a plus
Contact: Icarus@epflrocketteam.ch
Supervisor: Unknown
Number of students: 0/1
MOTIVATION
The EPFL Rocket Team aims to build thrust-vector-controlled rockets that can be reused by controlling them to propulsively land. We develop our own Hopper style rocket featuring landing legs to absorb the landing impact.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
In this project, we would like to size, build and test a scale down prototype of the current leg design in order to assess the performance and the behavior of the shock absorber. This project is based on a previous project where a first iteration of a leg module has been designed. On top of the prototype, several key works were identified to mainly refine the simulations and characterize the modal vibrations.
The ideal outcome of the project is a prototype thoroughly tested experimentally. The student is expected to iterate on the design based on the lessons learned in testing and in simulation. The student is asked to commit to the EPFL rocket team for the entire year.
Preliminary design of the Hopper Vehicle
SKILLS NEEDED (or that you are willing to learn)
- Proeficiency in computer-aided design [CAD] (Solidworks).
- Previous experiences in leading the design , manufacturing and testing of a product.
- Experiences in Finite Element Method Simulation
Contact: Icarus@epflrocketteam.ch
Supervisor: Unknown
Number of students: 0/1
MOTIVATION
The EPFL Rocket Team aims to build thrust-vector-controlled rockets that can be reused by controlling them to propulsively land. We develop our own Hopper style rocket featuring using a gimbal module to control the pitch and yaw and are looking to develop a system to regulate and control the roll of the vehicle.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
In this project, we would like to research and develop a state of the art mechanism to control the rotation along the vertical axis of the vehicle. This may involve a phase of research to evaluate and benchmark the different technical solutions followed by a preliminary design phase with appropriate simulations of the mechanism.
The ideal outcome of the project is a well-documented selection of the technical solution with a first full iteration of the design sized for a 70kg rocket Hopper. The resulting design could be later adapted in a prototype to be thoroughly tested and flown into the Hopper vehicle. The student will have the opportunity to continue his project through the second semester at EPFL Rocket Team.
Preliminary design of the Hopper Vehicle
SKILLS NEEDED (or that you are willing to learn)
- Proeficiency in computer-aided design [CAD] (Solidworks).
- Previous experiences in leading the design , manufacturing and testing of a product.
- Proeficiency in Matlab/Python
Contact: Icarus@epflrocketteam.ch
Supervisor: Unknown
Number of students: 0/1
EPFL ROCKET TEAM
ASSOCIATION
No Association wide project this semester!