Robotic vehicles for planetary exploration

摘要

Future missions to the moon, Mars, or other planetary surfaces will use planetary rovers for exploration or other tasks. Operation of these rovers as unmanned robotic vehicles with some form of remote or semi-autonomous control is desirable to reduce the cost and increase the capability and safety of many types of missions. However, the long time delays and relatively low bandwidths associated with radio communications between planets precludes a total “telepresence” approach to controlling the vehicle. A program to develop planetary rover technology has been initiated at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) under sponsorship of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Developmental systems with the necessary sensing, computing, power, and mobility resources to demonstrate realistic forms of control for various missions have been developed and initial testing has been completed. These testbed systems, the associated navigation techniques currently used and planned for implementation, and long-term mission strategies employing them are described.