Electronics

Overview

The electronics team is responsible for the design, development, testing, and maintenance of the rocket’s electronic subsystems, both onboard and ground-based. These include data acquisition units, telemetry communication modules, and control systems that ensure mission-critical operations are executed reliably. The electronic architecture also supports complex functionalities such as autonomous refueling procedures, control the engine shutdown, and precise payload recovery through guided descent. In short, we enable the rocket not only to fly, but to think, react, and come back where we want.

Preliminary Design

The electronics system is developed from the earliest phases of the project. Starting from requirements such as space constraints, computational needs, data acquisition, and actuation, the team defines the system architecture and prepares for PCB design. An initial analysis includes estimating the power budget, the number of supported sensors and actuators and the connection with every subsystem. These results are then shared with other departments to ensure alignment across the entire mission design.

Schematic and PCBs Design

Once the requirements and constraints are defined, the work on ECAD begins with the creation of schematics, based on the studies carried out during the preliminary design phase and refined through detailed component analysis. Once the schematics are validated, we move on to the design of the PCBs, which physically realize the schematics through an optimized layout that minimizes size, enhances reliability, ???????????

PCB Production and Assembly

Once the PCB designs are finalized, we move into the production phase. Often we rely on our generous sponsors who manufacture them to our specifications. When the boards are ready, we carefully solder the components, mostly SMDs, to reduce size and cost. Soldering requires patience and precision, as accuracy is crucial to ensure that every component is properly placed and the board functions reliably.

Testing

Finally, we test the fully assembled boards to determine whether our final design meets all our imposed criteria. This includes functional and safety checks, such as verifying signal integrity, power distribution, and subsystem communication. The electronics team works closely with the software team to run integrated tests, ensuring seamless interaction between hardware and firmware. Specific tests are conducted for boards in critical areas, like those near the engine, with thermal and vibration tests, or for antenna systems, with range and RF-specific tests. Only after passing these assessments the boards are integrated into the rocket’s avionics system.

Requirements

Base

  • Basic knowledge of electronics and analog and digital circuits
  • Knowledge on signal acquisition and related conditioning
  • Ability to use multimeter and bench power supply
  • Familiarity with PCB design software (Eagle, Altium designer, etc…)

Advanced

  • Ability to weld THT and SMD
  • Previous experience in the production of printed circuit boards
  • General knowledge and/or experience on STM32 microcontrollers
  • Knowledge on basic RF theory, transmission lines, analog and digital modulations, dipole and yagi antennas
  • Use of smith chart, knowledge of filters and amplifiers, design with FEM software (CTS, hfss)