I'm Kyle, the founder and solo builder behind ThrustLab. I competed in the DARPA Lift Challenge and saw that UAV competition is shifting toward aircraft optimized at the system level. I wanted a full simulation platform instead of another online calculator, one that treats the battery-to-propeller powertrain as a coupled system. I built ThrustLab over four years of iterative R&D, testing, and validation to close the gap between conceptual drone design and real-world testing. It supports steady-state operating points, sweeps, and dynamic mission simulation. Propeller aerodynamics are validated against the UIUC propeller wind-tunnel database. ThrustLab now has a growing database of 4,500+ readily available motors, propellers, and batteries, plus custom component inputs. It also has a REST API, an official Python SDK, and FMI 3.0 export with worked SITL examples for ArduPilot, Betaflight, Gazebo, and Simulink. The exported model runs inside a real autopilot loop and supplies per-rotor thrust and torque, battery voltage sag, and state of charge. Non-commercial users can choose from tiered subscriptions, while businesses can contact me about commercial licensing and special implementations. If you manufacture COTS or custom propellers, brushless motors, batteries, battery cells, or ESCs, I would like to get your components into the database. I am especially interested in NDAA-compliant components.

ThrustLab

Model the full UAV powertrain as one coupled system

Model the full UAV powertrain as one coupled system