Hardware is responsible for all physical parts of the drone as well as any other physical systems that come with it. As a hardware member, you and your team will develop our drones from concept to final product. During development, you will use CAD software to design and test different prototypes, learning and applying methods such as strength calculation, generative design, and flow simulation. Drone development also requires rigorous physical testing, including test flights. We also design custom circuit boards for the drone, including the onboard power delivery systems and battery packs needed to keep it airborne. We utilize many production and design techniques such as carbon fiber infusion and 3D-printing. We do most of the work in our own workshop but also cooperate with external sponsors and experts. If you enjoy working with design and practical tasks, then hardware is the group for you!

Apply Here

The Perception group gets the drone to sense its surroundings, understand what it sees and know where it is at all times. We use video and data from several cameras and a wide array of sensors. The perception group processes and combines the data so that it becomes useful for the other groups. A large part of the work in Perception is in computer vision, using both classical computer vision and machine learning to make programs that interpret images and video. As a Perception member you will learn about several different techniques and algorithms for signal processing, but most importantly find your own creative solutions.

Apply Here

To run a technical organization without money is like flying a drone without electricity. You can restructure it all you want, but it won’t go very far! This is why the Business group was created.

The Business group is responsible for Ascend's sources of income, sponsor relations, and all events organized by Ascend. We are looking for versatile individuals who can serve as both key account managers and event managers. Your responsibilities will include managing sponsor relations, seeking collaborative opportunities with current sponsors, reaching out to potential new sponsors, and negotiating new sponsorships. Additionally, you will actively explore other revenue sources beyond traditional sponsorships, such as public grants and similar opportunities. You will play a crucial role in ensuring that Ascend has the necessary funds to perform at its best!

As part of your role, you will also manage a variety of events throughout the year. These events range from private team events (like our cabin trips) to outreach campaigns at NTNU and Trondheim, and even organizing international travel, such as trips for competitions! Your ability to manage these events will ensure everyone at Ascend performs at their highest level and enjoys their experience.

Joining the Business group provides you with the opportunity to shape your role and innovate with new ideas in collaboration with the rest of the team. You will also gain invaluable organizational skills that will benefit you long after your time here at Ascend. If this sounds like an exciting opportunity, then be sure to apply for Ascend Business group Team 26!

Apply Here

The Control group is responsible for everything that moves on the drone, ensuring every movement is precise, stable, and perfectly controlled. We are the link between software and the physical world! As a member of Control, you will become familiar with a wide set of systems on all abstraction levels. This includes low-level software development such as microcontrollers, flight computers, and telemetry. 

One unique aspect of a Control member's role is actually flying drones, as getting a “feel” for the drone furthers our understanding of the drone’s dynamics. As a member of Control, you will be at the center of prototyping, testing, and development, leaving you with a diverse skill set and a unique perspective on drone technology. 

Apply Here

As a member of the Autonomy group, you will be creating the brains of our drones. Your work will consist of giving drones the decision-making ability required to successfully and efficiently complete our missions. With everything from classical high-performance algorithms to state-of-the-art AI methods, the Autonomy group empowers our drones to identify objectives and take strategic action to succeed in their mission.

This involves everything from simulating high-level mission planning to low-level mechanisms for managing the numerous complex systems of the drone. You will also develop and maintain our in-house simulator, which allows us to rapidly develop our systems without crashing our drones so often. To sum it up: You will get insight into state-of-the-art autonomy techniques as you program how our drones interpret their surroundings, predict the movement of objects around them and decide where they will fly next - all while flying at speeds up to 100km/h.

Apply Here

Any great project starts with a great foundation; any complex system you can imagine relies on strong roots to function. The same goes for Ascend, which is why we are looking for you to join the DevOps group. The DevOps group is responsible for our critical software infrastructure. Everything from servers, development platforms and automated testing and deployment. As a member of the DevOps group, you will become familiar with running Linux servers, both locally and in the cloud. You'll become familiar with advanced operating systems systems topics like containers and virtual machines that allow our systems to run smoothly across a plethora of device configurations. The group also designs and administers our network infrastructure and data links, keeping all our drones and computers reliably connected, even during flights far from the base station. This is quite important when our drones traverse as diverse terrains as ocean and dense forests!

In addition, the group is quite new, so you'll have to option to shape your role and to create new software for Ascend. This could range from serious stuff like our CV platform that we use to connect members with sponsors, to fun little projects such as our Slack-connected coffee maker. If you are interested in servers, cloud computing and agile software development, the DevOps group is the place for you!

‍Are you someone who likes to think about how to engage people? Are you fascinated by the ways different mediums and presentations can affect how people perceive the same thing? Do you want to collaborate with other organizations to increase Ascend’s outreach? Then you could be our new social media manager.

We are looking for someone who likes strategy and wants to develop our image and social media presence. You will become part of the marketing team and work to promote Ascend online, and also interact with the other technical organizations at NTNU, helping generate interest for the awesome work done by NTNU's students. You will coordinate our marketing campaigns and decide how we use our SoMe channels to most effectively reach our target audiences, communicate our messages, and make sure that Ascend is known among students at NTNU and potential sponsors!

We are looking for a visual storyteller with a passion for photography and an interest in technology. As our photographer, you will have the incredible opportunity to visually present our journey of aerial robotics. From exciting social events to engaging workshops to brain-storm sessions, your artistic eye will play a vital role in preserving the moments that showcase our technology and identity. You will work closely with the marketing leader, social media manager, and videographer to capture our best moments. You will learn to use Adobe CC suite to edit and customize the photos to perfection, master the tools, and gain an exclusive peek into our latest technology.

Ascend is looking for a videographer/filmmaker to help us engage students and sponsors about the work we do and autonomous drones in general! If you are looking to tell stories about the challenges of technological development and want to excite people about the possibilities of autonomous flight, you are the person we are looking for!

You will be filming and editing videos to highlight Ascend’s work and educate people about what it takes to create a system capable of autonomous flight. You will be working closely with the social media manager, photographer, and marketing leader to shape Ascend’s video strategy and will have a lot of room to shape the direction of Ascend’s video endeavors. You will learn how to operate a camera for videography and will have access to our DJI drone for aerial shots. You will also learn how to go from individual clips to a finished video using the Adobe CC suite. If you have some experience with, or an interest in, motion graphics or 3D modeling, this is a great addition*!

*But it is by no means necessary! We know we are asking for a lot here :)