Tele-Robotics and Autonomous Systems Technology Area Breakdown Structure

The Robotics, Tele-Robotics and Autonomous Systems Technology Area Breakdown Structure (TABS). This area includes sensors and algorithms needed to convert sensor data into representations suitable for decision-making. Traditional spacecraft sensing and perception included position, attitude, and velocity estimation in reference frames centered on solar system bodies, plus sensing spacecraft internal degrees of freedom, such as scan-platform angles. Current and future development will expand this to include position, attitude, and velocity estimation relative to local terrain, plus rich perception of characteristics of local terrain — where “terrain” may include the structure of other spacecraft in the vicinity and dynamic events, such as atmospheric phenomena.

Enhanced sensing and perception will broadly impact three areas of capability: autonomous navigation, sampling and manipulation, and interpretation of science data. In autonomous navigation, 3-D perception has already been central to autonomous navigation of planetary rovers. Current capability focuses on stereoscopic 3-D perception in daylight. Active optical ranging (LIDAR) is commonly used in Earthbased robotic systems and is under development for landing hazard detection in planetary exploration. Progress is necessary in increasing the speed, resolution, and field of regard of such sensors, reducing their size, weight, and power, enabling night operation, and hardening them for flight.

Range and imagery data is already in some use for rover and lander position and velocity estimation, though with relatively slow update rates. Realtime, onboard 3-D perception, mapping, and terrain-relative position and velocity estimation capability is also needed for small body proximity operation, balloons and airships, and micro-inspector spacecraft. For surface navigation, sensing and perception must be extended from 3-D. Perception to estimating other terrain properties pertinent to trafficability analysis, such as softness of soil or depth to the load-bearing surface. Many types of sensors may be relevant to this task, including contact and remote sensors onboard rovers and remote sensors on orbiters.

Sampling generally refers to handling natural materials in scientific exploration; manipulation includes actions needed in sampling and handling man-made objects, including sample containers in scientific exploration and handling a variety of tools and structures during robotic assembly and maintenance. 3-D perception, mapping, and relative motion estimation are also relevant here. Non-geometric terrain property estimation is also relevant to distinguish where and how to sample, as well as where and how to anchor to surfaces in micro-gravity or to steep slopes on large bodies.