Racing Drone Frame
Lightweight 5-inch racing drone frame optimized for FPV competition. Carbon fiber layup with integrated vibration dampening.
128g
weight
4:1
thrust
A+
durability
PROBLEM
An FPV racing team needed a frame that could survive high-speed crashes while maintaining the lowest possible weight for competition. Off-the-shelf frames were either too heavy (180g+) or too fragile at the arm roots. They also needed integrated vibration dampening for clean HD video recording during races.
APPROACH
Designed in a parametric CAD environment with motor spacing, camera tilt, and battery placement as driving parameters. Used composite layup analysis to optimize carbon fiber orientation at high-stress zones (arm roots, standoff mounts). Crash simulation determined critical failure modes and drove geometry reinforcement.
SIMULATION
Impact FEA at 80 km/h into a rigid surface from multiple angles. Modal analysis to identify vibration modes and tune the FC soft-mount geometry. Composite failure analysis (Tsai-Wu criterion) for each ply in the laminate schedule. CFD on arm cross-sections to minimize drag.
RESULTS
128g total frame weight, 28% lighter than the team's previous frame. Survived 50+ race crashes in testing with zero arm failures. Vibration at the FC mount reduced 60% versus the previous frame, enabling clean 4K recording without ND filters. Thrust-to-weight ratio maintained above 4:1 with standard 2207 motors.
SPECIFICATIONS
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