The explorer is depicted navigating the mine field himself and retrieving an object. The sample tubes, ESA explained, are hermetically sealed replicas of samples (thought to resemble ‘lightsabres’) left by NASA’s Perseverance rover on Mars with Martian soil inside.
For the Mars Sample Return mission, the Sample Retrieval Lander will land (near or in Jezero Crater) carrying a small rocket that will contain previously collected samples. (Two Ingenuity-like helicopters could also provide secondary capabilities for taking samples on the Martian surface.)
Stevenage
This is the second time engineers from ESA and Airbus have gathered in Stevenage, the headquarters of Airbus Defense and Space, to carry out field trials. After several upgrades, the rover was deemed complete enough to autonomously navigate unknown terrain, detect and collect samples.
It features a robotic arm – shown in blue – that takes on the challenge of picking up thin, 15 cm long sample tubes dropped around a simulated depot.
“We ran this test to bring together all the technologies we had developed individually,” said Pantelis Poulakis, ESA’s Sample Transfer Arm project manager for the Mars Sample Return campaign. “This is important for gaining confidence in demanding scientific and exploration missions on Mars.”
Mapping
The rover maps the terrain and locates the tube, autonomously navigating towards it until it reaches the parking position. It uses stereo cameras to create a 180-degree map of the surrounding environment and plan subsequent maneuvers.
Once parked, a camera on the mast detects the tube and estimates its position relative to the rover. The robotic arm initiates a complex choreography to approach the sample, collect it, and store it.
In full, the test lasted two weeks and involved the rover covering a distance of 300 meters across several obstacles – from flat, straight-line tracks to rocky and zig-zag tracks.
Engineers want the rover to learn how to observe other planets, avoid boulders and get close to samples of interest, the ESA explained. The rover and its new arm complete the job independently.
“Each new field trial is an opportunity to enhance Europe’s capability to carry out large-scale tests of complex rover systems,” said Geoffray Doignon, Airbus Stevenage technical lead for rover breadboarding activities. “This helps us understand design limitations and validate the rover’s operation under realistic conditions.”
However, more work is still needed as teams from industry and ESA plan to further improve the wheeled robot’s performance next year.
See also: ESA opens new UK events venue at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus
2023-10-19 05:28:06
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