A customizable and scalable propulsion testing rig designed to test and analyze drone propulsion components such as motors, propellers, ESCs, and batteries in real-time. Developed as part of an internship project at [UrbanMatrix Technologies] under the mentorship of Prof. V.K. Gupta, IIITDM Jabalpur.
The primary aim is to develop a test rig that:
- Measures real-time thrust, voltage, current, and temperature.
- Helps identify component faults through benchmarking and diagnostics.
- Provides flexibility through a custom-built, modifiable platform.
- Improves drone reliability and safety with better thermal monitoring.
- Sensor Integration
- Load Cell (SPI) – Thrust measurement
- MLX90614 IR Temperature Sensor (I2C)
- Thermistor (via Arduino -> SPI)
- Power Module (I2C) – Voltage & current
- Data Logging & Visualization
- Python scripts for logging on Raspberry Pi
- Visualization: Thrust vs Power, Voltage vs Current, etc.
- User-Friendly Interface
- Touchscreen-based GUI for manual & automated testing
- Component Testing Capabilities
- Supports propellers up to 21”
- Motor mount size up to 3cm
- Current range: 0–40A
- RPM up to 25,000
- Fusion 360 (CAD modeling)
- 3D Printing
- CNC Machining (aluminum & carbon fiber components)
- Python (sensor integration, data logging)
- Raspberry Pi + Arduino (hardware interfacing)
- SPI & I2C communication protocols
- Shell scripting (automation on Raspberry Pi)
- Flight time optimization
- Vibration and noise testing
- Thermal performance and diagnostics
- Preventative maintenance
- Payload vs performance benchmarking
- Quality assurance & replication of flight conditions
- 📄 View Documentation (PDF)
- Rig (Image)
- GUI (Image)
