Parsa Rezaei

Work · NASA MINDS competition

Morphing-Geometry Multirotor

NASA MINDS 2024 - Semi-Finalist

A multirotor whose thruster pods pivot and slide on servo-driven rails, shifting from a wide-span cruise configuration to a compact footprint that fits through doorways and pipe racks.

The morphing multirotor on grass, thruster pods and wiring mounted on servo-driven rails
The morphing multirotor on grass, thruster pods and wiring mounted on servo-driven rails

The problem

Span is a direct trade: wide is efficient in cruise, narrow is what gets you through a doorway or a culvert. Fixed-geometry aircraft have to pick one and live with it.

What I did

Mounted the thruster pods on servo-driven rails so the airframe changes geometry in seconds, optimizing lift-to-drag for range and then tucking the rotors close to the fuselage for access.

Made the motor arms modular and swappable so the same airframe serves several mission profiles without a rebuild.

Result

One vehicle covering both long-range flight and confined-space inspection, aimed at industrial inspection where access is the binding constraint. Semi-Finalist at NASA MINDS 2024.

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10 figures

From the report

Bench photographs and measured data from the project's own report.

The morphing airframe part-way through assembly
Arms and hub during construction
The airframe folded into its O configuration
And extended into H
Control system installed, out on the field
Thrust efficiency as a function of servo angle — the core trade of a morphing frame
Carbon-fiber base plate on the scale; mass is the whole argument
Revised arm design after the first iteration
Custom PCB for the morphing actuation
The Wasp-39b team with the vehicle