LV Battery Management System
I designed this board for an internship program at Relativity Space. It was an early revision of the low voltage battery management system (BMS) for their first rocket, Terran 1. While I was lucky to be able to work on projects within the rocket itself, I unfortunately can’t get into specifics as a result.
Broadly speaking, the goal was to design a BMS that ensured Terran 1’s low voltage batteries were being charged and discharged safely. These batteries powered most of the avionics on both stages of the rocket, so reliability and current carrying capacity were huge priorities. The board had to handle supplying over 1kW of power continuously.
When working on this project, I followed a methodical procedure. I started by writing a spreadsheet listing all the project requirements along with how each one would be verified. Then, I drafted an architectural block diagram and performed parts selection. After all of the planning was done, I finally worked on the schematic and layout. This was my first time designing a board with more than 6 layers, so it was a really exciting experience.
Outside of my project, I also had the opportunity to work on a second mission critical circuit board. I co-routed the 16-layer power distribution board with my mentor, which was a unique challenge.