MIRA: A Modular Open-Source Micro-UAV for Indoor Research

Indoor robotics research increasingly relies on micro-UAV platforms whose airframes, electronics, and control software are open to modification. Off-the-shelf platforms often lack the low-level access that such modifications require, while building a custom vehicle demands substantial engineering effort before the first flight test, leaving many laboratories working within constraints that limit the scope of their research. We present MIRA (Modular Indoor Research Architecture), an open-source micro-UAV for indoor research, built around a replicable 3D-printed PLA airframe with detachable arms and a containerized low-level software package that manages the companion-to-autopilot communication bridge via Micro XRCE-DDS. Designed as a white-box architecture, its core subsystems, including the companion computer, are individually replaceable without firmware refactoring, which supports local fabrication, crash-localized repair, and component substitution from existing laboratory inventory. We characterize MIRA through autonomous flights comprising takeoff, hovering, trajectory tracking, and landing within an optical motion-capture volume. The communication pipeline sustains a median companion-to-autopilot latency of 0.02 ms, with the external motion-capture link as the main remaining latency source, and time-domain analysis shows that structural vibration remains stable during dynamic maneuvers and below the reference level adopted in this work. All design files and software are released openly to support replication and extension by other laboratories.