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AMIIC Intern Creates Combination of IMU, GPS, and Barometric Altimeter

January 29, 2025

Samuel Newport, a junior at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) and intern at the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation and Integration Center (AMIIC) through the Aerospace Program at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), recently collaborated with Hayato Ando, Noa Milivojevic, David Moore, Gavin Reeves, Hunter Sexton, and Peter Summers on a challenge focused on designing and calibrating a specialized measuring device. The team chose a develop a position tracker, utilizing multiple measurement instruments to achieve precise position readings. The instrument was designed for use as a rocket payload to track the position of a rocket in flight. Designed as a rocket payload, the device was engineered to track a rocket’s flight path. It incorporated an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), a Global Positioning System (GPS), and a Barometric Altimeter, working together to ensure accurate positioning data.

The assembled design included wiring, soldering, and housing. While the physical device was being created, its software was also under development, consisting of two key components: Data Collection in Arduino, and Data Analysis in MatLab. Once the device was fully constructed and capable of extracting data, it underwent a calibration process. Each measurement instrument was calibrated individually using different methods, including a NIST measurement device and triangulation for the Magnetometer, as well as a NIST measurement device for altitude calibration of the Altimeter. After calibration, the rocket was launched with the device as its payload to obtain flight data.

During this project, the team learned valuable lessons, including managing each phase of the measurement device build while ensuring all tasks were completed within the project timeline.

3D Printing for Electronics Sled:
A custom electronics sled was designed and 3D-printed at the AMIIC facility in Huntsville, AL, to securely house electronic components during high-G rocket launches. The parts shown in the gallery below are all components of the final sled assembly.

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