Autonomous navigation system for MRoSA2 with focus on mobility and localization

Autonomous navigation is important for robots operating in unstructured environments, particularly in planetary exploration missions where communication delay is also an issue. The design of an autonomous navigation system is not a trivial problem, particularly for tracked vehicles. Despite their ability in offering better traction for mobile robots on unknown terrains, the complex dynamics resulting from the skid-steering principle in tracked vehicles have made this type of locomotion an atypical choice for planetary rovers which requires accurate motion control. In this study, a mobility library for European Space Agency (ESA)'s tracked rover ROSA is developed. Based on a strictly kinematic model analogous to that of a differential wheeled vehicle, slippage and track-soil interaction of the tracked rover are partially accounted for in the driving commands. Using a 3D tracking technique with on-rover beacons and stereo images from the stationary lander, the accuracy of the mobility system can be investigated. The stereo images from the lander would also be used as a platform for designating sites of interest, whose 3D spatial coordinates would be reconstructed by stereopsis. Navigational guidance in reaching target locations could then be provided by the user in the form of waypoints from which a smooth path would be generated and translated by the control software into a series of motion commands for the rover.Validerat; 20101217 (root