Pranav Narayan Email & Phone Number

College Park, Maryland, United States

- Trained a Python Diffrax-based Neural ODE to accurately represent complex orbital motion around various types of regular and irregular celestial bodies, achieving a model loss under 1% in LEO- Constructing a series of databases within Docker containers to visualize complex telemetry streams in Grafana - Simulating satellite flight telemetry, with particular focus on orbital, sensor, and control system data, via Basilisk, with the goal of passing this data through a pipeline to visualization to streamline development and testing of anomaly detection algorithms-Researching Deep Learning algorithms for satellite fault detection to expand the early-detection and autonomy capabilities afforded by classical Machine Learning methodology

- Conceived solar-based power generation and distribution for a 3U CubeSat with a power-hungry experimental phase-change material payload, intended to maintain a minimum power input of 10 W during minimal consumption and 20 W at full experimental runtime- Delegate tasks across three separate projects to a team of 5+ individuals, maintaining communication both within the power subteam and with other subteams to ensure identical expectations across the entire CubeSat design- Coordinate periodic design reviews and lab meetings with faculty advisor- Lead subteam onboarding, mentoring new team members in organizational procedures and advanced technical knowledge

- Designed a custom experimental thermodynamic cycle system, as an experimental setup, using phase-change materials, to simulate thermal patterns seen on a CubeSat in LEO- Created a control system for a time-varying thermal phase-change material setup, sustaining a constant heat input throughout experimental runtime by using PIDs to calculate necessary heat application given data filtered from a series of thermistors- Construct an experimental setup, by machining aluminum and using a length of tubing, a chiller, a cold plate, several thermistors, a film heater, and a DAQ, to perform various tests on phase-change materials in preparation for a scientific payload on a CubeSat- Modeled thermal systems for a 3U CubeSat with a phase-change material experimental payload in LEO for over 2 years, using Thermal Desktop and MATLAB- Developed innovative active heating mechanisms for a CubeSat payload on a high-altitude balloon at 30+ km to maintain sensitive electronics and keep temperature fluctuations under 25%

- Organize general body meetings and coordinated scheduling and event details with the Department of Aerospace Engineering- Lead efforts to secure over $30000 of funding from the Aerospace Engineering Department, Student Government, and corporate partnerships every semester- Build relationships with industry and academia partners to maintain a pipeline of technical knowledge and resources that drives successful project outcomes

- Managing an accurate membership database for an organization of 150+ members of SEDS@UMD- Maintaining organizational file systems to ensure accurate and rapid access for all members- Collect, record, and analyze census and demographic data for the organization

- Implementing ROS2 Extended Kalman Filter nodes for feature-level sensor fusion and localization in an autonomous 6DOF robot, integrating IMU, DVL, and camera data and reducing computational cost by 30%- Building Behavior Trees in C++ for autonomous motion planning in a RoboSub competition environment, enabling completion of necessary motion-based tasks and enhancing control flow readability

- Research and develop, leading a team of 5, a solenoid-based pneumatics setup to replace all servos in the control of an underwater torpedo and grabbing claw, and achieve 100+ psi through each solenoid- Design an electronic control system to separately and autonomously activate 4 different solenoids, reduce power draw from the previous motor system, and receive instructions from an external computer- Construct a waterproof acrylic hull and endcaps to securely hold solenoids, electronics, and an air tank, easily access any pneumatics systems in need of attention, and safely connect solenoids to end effectors- Designed and manufactured, using Solidworks and 3D printing, a durable, waterproof camera mount to be mounted to the underside of an existing robot frame

- Researched the efficacy of several propeller configurations for unmanned drone flight, including coaxial, contrarotating, and ducted propeller systems- Design several pairs of contrarotating, coaxial propellers, in CAD, to achieve 60+ Newtons of thrust, analyzing several configurations to determine the most effective using CFD software

Bachelor Of Science - Bs, Aerospace, Aeronautical And Astronautical Engineering, 4.0

Activities and Societies: SEDS@UMD, Robotics @ Maryland

Education record