Minerva Aerodesign

Multidisciplinary design optimization

The team develops and maintains Virtus, an in-house Multidisciplinary Design Optimization (MDO) framework that integrates all design areas from the earliest stages of the project. Virtus is fed with parameters from every macro-area and, following the bonus and penalty criteria of the yearly competition rules, runs the optimization with OpenMDAO — a Python framework for structuring and executing optimization problems — coupled to AVL for the estimation of aerodynamic, stability and control characteristics. The output defines the aircraft configuration that maximises the competition score while satisfying the regulatory constraints, and feeds the detailed design of each area up to manufacturing.

In the 2025 cycle the model was substantially refined, with updated airfoil libraries, structural masses and component weights, and with the inclusion of alternative powerplant options in the optimization loop. The same framework was used to compare different UAV typologies and configurations against the competition constraints.

Computational simulations

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analyses are carried out with OpenFOAM as the high-fidelity complement to the lower-cost methods used in the early design phases. The simulations resolve the flow around the aircraft and are decisive for the definition of the winglets, the fuselage geometry and the aerodynamic behaviour of wing, empennage and remaining lifting surfaces. Individual discretisation of the components allows the contribution of each element to the global aerodynamic performance to be quantified.

Dynamic behaviour is assessed with AVL together with linear-system analyses implemented in Python, evaluating the aircraft response in the time and frequency domains and verifying dynamic stability against consolidated aeronautical standards. On the structural side, MATLAB and Python are used to quantify and size the loads acting on the airframe, AVL and XFLR5 provide the aerodynamic loads on the lifting surfaces, and static, dynamic and modal simulations are performed with Ansys and FEMAP. The powerplant is modelled in Python, MATLAB, Simulink and PSIM to evaluate system behaviour, size the operational speeds and analyse power-limiting strategies required by the competition rules.

Flow around the aircraft computed in OpenFOAM.

Total deformation field of the empennage obtained by FEA.

Research and development of materials

The structural integrity macro-area is responsible for the research, evaluation and development of the materials used in the aircraft. Mechanical tensile and flexural tests are performed on a wide range of materials, including carbon-fibre and glass-fibre composites, carbon-fibre sandwich structures with Divinycell core, balsa wood of different densities, and polymers obtained by additive manufacturing (3D printing).

The experimental characterisation confirms the mechanical properties adopted in the design, validating the computational models and increasing their reliability. The studies developed by the team on composite and polymeric materials are used as a technical reference by other teams in the competition and are being organised for submission to a congress promoted by SAE Brasil.

Electric propulsion systems

The systems and performance macro-area continuously improves the electric propulsion system, modelling and simulating the powerplant in Simulink and PSIM in order to reproduce the motor behaviour throughout all flight phases. Complementary studies address the design and manufacture of the team's own propellers, covering modelling, simulation and fabrication.

The 2025 aircraft also carried an embedded telemetry system developed entirely by the team, together with a dedicated electronic board designed, assembled, soldered and functionally validated in-house — from the circuit architecture and the selection of components to the final integration. Both activities include ensuring the electrical compatibility between subsystems and keeping the operation of the aircraft within the established safety limits.

Main dashboard of the telemetry system developed by the team, monitoring battery voltage and current, servo currents, airspeed, angle of attack, acceleration, altitude and the trajectory of the aircraft.

Grant details

Results of the funded project

The funding was fully executed in the first year of the biennium. Most of the acquired goods are long-lasting items that remain in use in the following design cycles — among them the radio controller, the powerplant group, the servo kit, the nylon propellers, the monitor and the receiver.

The impact of the support is visible across the whole 2025 cycle:

• Competition performance. The team gained 10 positions with respect to 2024, reaching 22nd place out of 53 teams, with 17th place in the design report stage and 4th place in structures.
• Systems and electronics. The new radio controller, responsible for the control of the aircraft in flight and on the ground and for the motor power limiter, removed the power-excess penalty that had been invalidating the flights of the team in previous editions. The electrical and safety assessment area obtained an unprecedented 12th place, with 17.84 out of 25 points.
• Multidisciplinary optimization. The acquisition of adequate computational equipment made the execution of the Virtus MDO possible; running it on the personal computers of the members would not have allowed its full development. The integration report score rose by 3.08 points with respect to 2024.
• Materials and simulation. The investment in appropriate material and in electronic components supported the mechanical testing campaign and the licences and training in simulation software (Ansys, Abaqus, FEMAP), consolidating the team as a technical reference and benchmark for other teams of the competition.
• Outreach and self-funding. In parallel, the team developed its first own fundraising plan, selling products manufactured by its members at two events held at the Museu Aeroespacial of the Brazilian Air Force, in Campo dos Afonsos, Rio de Janeiro. Its Instagram profile reached 2,000 followers in December 2025, a growth of 33% over the year and more than 300 thousand accumulated views, while the LinkedIn page exceeded its target of 150 followers.