Development of mobility system for Marsokhod rover

The search for life on Mars is being propelled by recent successes by unmanned robotic rovers. Robotic teleoperation over large distances poses a number of challenges, and thus, in order to maximize the number of scientific operations carried out during increasingly ambitious missions, rover autonomy and intelligence becomes paramount. At the core of a planetary rover is the Mobility System, which commands the actuators to perform the necessary driving commands. These can range from basic forward and reverse driving and turns, to determining and driving along more complicated paths. This thesis describes Driving Algorithms tailored to the constraints and challenges posed by the control of the six-wheeled, skid-steered Marsokhod rover. The implementation of robust communication between the rover and the ground station using technologies adapted from the Generic Intelligent Machines (GIM) Project is also discussed. The algorithms were successfully verified on an Offline Simulator that emulated the actual behavior of the rover, as well as during limited testing with the Marsokhod rover itself.Validerat; 20101217 (root