Project Info


Distributed spacecraft network

Qi Han | qhan@mines.edu and Chris Dreyer | Mechanical Engineering

This project aims to develop a framework for tight integration of communication and controls as an enabling technology for NASA to effectively deploy swarms of small spacecraft. This framework will make it possible for a network of self-organizing small spacecraft to be highly collaborative among themselves for the monitoring of time-varying and geographically distributed phenomena.

Elucidate the interdisciplinary nature of the project

This is a joint project between computer science and mechanical engineering.

More Information

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Grand Engineering Challenge: Engineer the tools of scientific discovery

Student Preparation


Qualifications

Student #1-Good programming skills.

Student #2- good hands-on skills on integrating hardware pieces

Time Commitment

20 hours/month

Skills/Techniques Gained

Student #1 – Wireless ad-hoc networking communication; working with embedded systems

Student #2 – integrated hardware and software systems for distributed network of autonomous systems

Mentoring Plan

Weekly meetings with students who are also mentored by grad students, also weekly research group meetings