Ross Davis

Background

About Ross Davis

I am a mechanical design and microcontroller systems engineer leveraging modeling, iterative processes, and root cause analysis to better my ability in making reliable products. As design engineer at BlueFlite, a delivery drone start-up, I use experience from my research at MSU to make informed decisions about the platform in a group and individual setting. At MSU I led and completed a NASA funded research project aimed to approach solutions to the safety, quietness, and affordability of drone delivery. These benchmarks are achieved by landing and latching a delivery drone atop public transit vehicles to ride closer to their destination. I led the design and construction of the full scale drone-bus latch, landing and payload components, and served as the systems engineer for charging and landing contingency. In Summer 2023 I participated in the XPrize Rainforest Semifinals competition, leading the drone team on behalf of MSU. The project focused on autonomously collecting data on the state of Singapore’s rainforest ecosystems using cheap and accessible solutions. I gained experience in quickly producing devices to collect data specified by the team’s biologists and conducting payload deployment/recovery operations with custom built drones. These experiences have grown my skills in project management and given perspective on producing a low risk and practical system. I am applying my knowledge of the drone industry at Blueflite to assist in managing risk in their drone products and scaling production. In the future I am planning to attend graduate school focusing on aerodynamics or controls.