Flight hardware: Payload structures and Integration

For this phase of the LAIKA development program, I tackled designing and validating the payload sled and attachment bar system that retains the robotic dog during flight and reliably releases it after landing. This ended up being a much more nuanced problem than a standard payload restraint, mostly because LAIKA behaves like a real animal rather than a rigid object.

I started by building a detailed CAD model of LAIKA and working through its dimensional and operational constraints. Very early on, I realized that although the robot is roughly symmetric, it does not stand or deploy along a clean vertical axis. Because LAIKA’s legs are designed to mimic biological canine motion, the robot naturally rises and loads itself at an angle. That meant that a traditional straight attachment bar or symmetric release geometry would fight the robot’s natural motion instead of working with it.

Once that became clear, I shifted the design approach. Instead of forcing LAIKA into an idealized vertical deployment, I designed the sled interface and attachment bar geometry around the posture the robot actually wants to take. This required developing a specialized bar shape and carefully chosen release angles so that, once the sled was free, LAIKA would naturally move away from the vehicle without binding, snagging, or re-contacting the structure.

To get this right, I went through an iterative test and refinement process. I evaluated different bar angles, contact points, and sled geometries, then adjusted the release logic and constraints accordingly. This included updating the control assumptions so that we could guarantee release on the ground based on the robot’s leg shape and deployment motion, rather than relying on ideal conditions. Each iteration tightened the margin between “should release” and “will release,” which was the real goal of the system. (Video Below if your tired of reading!!)