Mechanical Engineering capstone project that developed a safer alternative to black powder ejection systems for amateur model rockets. The team's solution uses a DC motor driving a lead screw geartrain to both secure the nosecone during launch and actively eject the parachute at apogee, controlled by an ESP32 microcontroller, barometric altimeter, and ultrasonic position sensor.
The design was validated through ground tests with a 100% success rate and subsequently succeeded in a live rocket launch test. Compared to traditional black powder systems, SPEAR eliminates fireproofing requirements, reduces per-launch consumable cost to a fraction of a cent, and cuts setup time from 30 minutes to approximately 4 minutes.