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Internship Report on STATIC TEST PAD FOR ROCKET MOTOR At STAR - Space
Technology and Aeronautical Rocketry

Preprint · October 2021

DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.35988.22405

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7 authors, including:

Apoorva Khairnar Saheb Bedi

College of Engineering, Pune Manipal Academy of Higher Education
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Internship Report on

STATIC TEST PAD FOR ROCKET

MOTOR
At STAR – Space Technology and Aeronautical Rocketry

Apoorva Khairnar (Systems Engineer)

25th September, 2021 to 25th October, 2021
Static Test Pad

What is a Static Test Pad?

• A Static Test Pad (STP) is a device used for conducting static test fires as well as other
large subsystems tests on a solid rocket motor.
• It helps in measuring thrust-time characteristics along with other properties like
chamber pressure and temperature of a solid rocket motor.
• Carrying out these tests on a rocket motor is a standard process in propulsion testing.
• Following figures depict some of the commonly used STPs

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Basic working principle of Static Test Pad:

A STP is used to test rocket motors of varying sizes and lengths. It is supposed to ensure
stability and safety along with efficient data collection. A computer program is used to
ignite the motor and then the data acquisition process is triggered. The following points
give a brief idea of the working principle.
• Body: The body consists of two clamps which together form a motor mount to
hold the rocket motor in place, horizontally. These clamps are mounted on a base
plate which also holds the avionics bay and load cell. After ignition, the motor
exerts force on the load cell.
• Avionics: The avionics, i.e., the electronic circuit is responsible for igniting the
motor and collecting data from the load cell. In addition to it, the avionics collects
temperature, pressure and other data and sends signal in case of emergencies.
The data collected is then used to analyse the performance of the rocket motor
under various conditions

Why to make Static Test Pad?

One makes a test pad to test different parameters of a rocket motor including its thrust
temperature, pressure and vibration. This is used to test the motor before put in a model/
high powered rocket and it simulates the same environment, to make calculate different
aspects of it such as the ISP.

Architecture:

The two major sections of an STP architecture are Design and Avionics. As I was a
Systems Engineer, I was the common link between Design and Avionics teams. I was
responsible for ensuring sync between both the teams. Along with that, I mainly
worked with Design team as I was a Deign intern.

• Design:
Aim: i) To develop a STP which would be easy to assemble, cost efficient and easy
to carry around.
ii) To develop a STP which could accommodate rocket motors of varying sizes
and lengths with a thrust range of 150 N to 500 N.

Conceptual Design:
o We brainstormed different ideas to fulfil the above the criteria. We started off
by discussing the orientation of our STP and finalised a horizontal orientation
as it would provide more stability and more room to accommodate the
additional accessories.

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 o To make the STP easily portable and lightweight a foldable base plate was
proposed by me.
o Also, the conventional clamp design was modified to accommodate the large
range of sizes and lengths. It consisted of springs to hold the motor and wheels
underneath to change the length.
o I drew the conceptual design in paint to get a basic idea of it.

Intermediate Design:
After receiving feedback from the shapers, few changes were made in the
conceptual design and presented during the preliminary and critical design
review.
o As the springs proposed in the clamp design would give rise to a lot of
vibrations, they were replaced with a ball transfer mechanism with a wing bolt
to change the inner diameter.
o Since the conceptual design consisted of rails for the clamp to move to and fro,
the design could not accommodate the large range of length (15cm to 70cm).
Here, I came up with the idea of using a telescopic joint connecting two parts
of the base plate. The design was then able to accommodate motors of length
15 cm to 50 cm.
o Initially, legs, as shown in the figure were proposed. However, we were asked
to make them of variable length. So, I updated them to telescopic legs.
o Taking these changes in mind, I developed the basic CAD model for STP in
Fusion 360.

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Final Design:
The intermediate design almost covered all aspects of a STP, but a few minor
changes were remaining.
o We were asked to incorporate a fire extinguisher system if possible. This
system consisted of 4 curved tubes with a nozzle at the end. These tubes were
added on the aft side of the base plate.
o A proper load cell was also attached to the avionics bay. This load cell could
sustain the maximum 500 N force exerted by the motor.
o Al 7475 was finalised as the material for the assembly.
o The following figures summarize the final CAD model and simulation results.

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 Cost:
Dimensions (Raw material in Raw material mass Unit cost per cost (in
Name Quantity
S.No mm) in kg kg INR)
Al 7475 Base plate
1 130 x 180 x 35 1 2.3 400 920
part 1
Al 7475 Base plate
2 340 x 180 x 35 1 6.03 400 2412
part 2
Al 7475 Base plate
3 220 x 180 x 35 1 3.9 400 1560
part 3
4 Avionics Bay 1 2989
5 Leg 125 x 25 x 2 4 1.67 400 2672
6 M12 6 pack of 6 309
Screws
M4 40 pack of 40 160
7 Bolts M15 2 pack of 2 54

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 M10 4 pack of 4 112
8 Nuts M10 4 pack of 4 116
9 Machining cost 3000
10 Miscellaneous 1000

15304

• Avionics
Aim: To develop a circuit that would collect and process data from an STP and send
signals when necessary.

Components used:
o Arduino Uno R3
Arduino Uno is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega328P
(datasheet). It has 14 digital input/output pins (of which 6 can be used as PWM
outputs), 6 analog inputs, a 16 MHz ceramic resonator, a USB connection, a
power jack, an ICSP header and a reset button.

o Load Cell
A load cell is a transducer which converts force into a measurable electrical
output. As the force applied to the load cell increases, the electrical signal
changes proportionally.

o HX711 Module

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 The HX711 load cell amplifier is used to get measurable data out from a load
cell.

o K Type Thermocouple
A thermocouple is a sensor that measures temperature. It consists of two
different types of metals, joined together at one end. When the junction of the
two metals is heated or cooled, a voltage is created that can be correlated back
to the temperature. A thermocouple is a simple, robust and cost-effective
temperature sensor used in a wide range of temperature measurement
processes.
o Vibration Sensor
A vibration sensor is a device that measures the amount and frequency of
vibration in a given system, machine, or piece of equipment. Those
measurements can be used to detect imbalances or other issues in the asset
and predict future breakdowns.
o Relay
To ignite the Motor
o Ultrasonic Sensor
An ultrasonic sensor is an instrument that measures the distance to an object
using ultrasonic sound waves. An ultrasonic sensor uses a transducer to send
and receive ultrasonic pulses that relay back information about an object's
proximity.

o HC- 05 Module
For Wireless Bluetooth transmission of Data.
o SD Card Module

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 o The data collected via Arduino must be stored and processed. We also need a
backup in case of data loss, which necessitates the use of an SD Card and an
SD Card holder.
o LED and Buzzer
These are used as an indicator.

Bluetooth transmission using HC-05 Module:

o It is a simple software serial code in which we are sending data from our Serial
terminal to Bluetooth means whatever you write in your serial terminal will be
sent over to Bluetooth and whatever you receive on your Bluetooth will be
shown in serial terminal.
o The Software can also be used to add our own code and can be used to send
signals to the Bluetooth Module as well
o Serial Terminal Software Made Using Microsoft Visual Basics 2010
o Software to communicate to send and receive data and get a table for the data
which can be exported to excel and used to make graphs.

Proteus circuit:
A test circuit was built in Proteus using the above electronic components.

Arduino code:

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PCB:

Cost:

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Basic components, software required to build a Static Test Pad:

• Softwares
o Design
i) Fusion 360 – Fusion 360 is a cloud-based 3D Modelling, CAD, CAM, CAE
and PCB software platform. It enables the user to create, simulate,
render as well as animate a CAD Model. It can also be used in generating
G-, M- codes for CAM.
o Avionics
i) Proteus - The Proteus software is used in simulating components circuit
by uploading the hex code to the micro-controller and is also capable of
drawing desired circuits. It has a huge list of components and various
libraries can be added to include more components. This software was
used by us for simulating the components by using code written for the
microcontrollers.
ii) Arduino IDE - Arduino is an open software that uses variant C language
and allows users to download and execute programs on the
microcontroller. The language has a number of abstractions to make
common tasks. So every Arduino board has pulse-width modulated
output pins which can be easily controlled with simple commands. The
boards have serial communications over USB and a fairly robust
implementation of the serial protocol. Analog to digital conversions are
very easy to perform with simple commands. Timers and interrupts are
inbuilt into the language.
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 iii) Eagle - EAGLE EDA, by Autodesk, is an electronic design automation
software that lets us in connecting schematic diagrams, component
placement, PCB routing and comprehensive library content.

Procedure to build a Static Test Pad:

• Assembly and Working of Design

The assembly of this design is quite simple and easy. It follows the following
procedure.
o The two base plates can be connected using M8 bolts, which can be loosened
to fold them together.
o The telescopic rods can be joined using M4 screws.
o This can be followed by attaching the legs using M4 screws and M12 bolts and
nuts.
o The clamps can then just be placed in the rails and moved around to adjust the
length.
o The clamp bolts can be adjusted to the diameter of the motor.

• Working of Avionics:

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 Algorithm
1. Obtain data from Ultrasonic Sensor
Check distance<150:
YES: LED flash
Abort_signal=HIGH
NO: Abort_signal=LOW

2. Check for abort signal (every 2 sec)

If abort_signal is LOW

3. Increase the count by 1

If count == 5
4. Ignite the motor
Every 0.02 sec
5. a) Thermocouple:
Collect the data

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 Amplify the data
Check TC>1450
YES: LED flash
Abort_signal=HIGH
NO: store the data in SD card
Check for load cell==0
Repeat
b)Load cell:
Collect the data
Amplify the data
Convert analog data to digital data (ADC convertor)
Check LC>limit
YES: LED flash
Abort_signal=HIGH
NO: store the data in SD card
Check for load cell==0
Repeat
c)Vibration Sensor:
Collect the data
Check Vibration is too much
YES: LED flash
Abort_signal=HIGH
NO: store the data in SD card
Check for load cell==0
Repeat
6. End

Observation:
After completing the CAD model, simulations were carried out in Fusion 360. During these
simulations, the assembly was subjected to forces ranging from 150 N to 500 N. The forces
exerted on ball transfer mechanism in the clamp were ignore during the simulations. The
following figures summarize these simulations. The factor of safety rendered from the
simulations ranged from 8 to 15. Hence, the STP had a very good stability and strength.

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Conclusion:
Our design is easy to use, lightweight and cost effective as well. We have taken inspiration
form unique everyday things such as the wheels under wardrobe doors, telescopic joints,
etc. In addition to it, our avionics is also very well designed using proper connections and
relevant sensors. In conclusion, as a team, we were able to overcome all our challenges and
difficulties and design a fully functionable, safe, stable and cost effective Static Test Pad for
Rocket Motor.

Precautions:
Stay At least 15 meters Away from the STP for Safety Precautions. The STP also has an
inbuilt feature which aborts the test if any object/ person is within 1.5 meter. It is also
recommended to keep a fire extinguisher in hand in case of the inbuilt system failing for
safety precautions. To is also advised to keep the STP on a flat surface and make sure it
does not wobble. While assembling make sure to tighten every bolt. It is recommended to
conduct the test in an open environments.

Team members:
Systems Engineer – Apoorva Khairnar
Design Team: Avionics:
Apoorva Khairnar Zubin Mehra
Deepamangala S Samyuktha Ravikumar
Saheb Bedi Shradha Komatwar
Gagan VS

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