Barefoot Rover: A Sensor-Embedded Rover Wheel Demonstrating In-Situ Engineering and Science Extractions Using Machine Learning
No abstract provided
Yates, Devon↗
Engineering topics
Junkins, Eric
Publications and source records attributed to Junkins, Eric.
Barefoot Rover: a Sensor-Embedded Rover Wheel Demonstrating In-Situ Engineering and Science Extractions using Machine Learning
No abstract provided
Mandrake, Lukas↗
Barefoot Rover: a Sensor-Infused Rover Wheel Demonstrating In-Situ Engineering and Science Extractions using Machine Learning
In this work, we demonstrate an instrumented wheel concept which utilizes a 2D pressure grid, an electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) sensor and machine learning (ML) to extract meaningful metrics from the interaction between the wheel and surface terrain. These include continuous slip/skid estimation, balance, and sharpness for engineering applications. Estimates of surface hydration, texture, terrain patterns, and regolith physical properties such as cohesion and angle of internal friction are additionally calculated for science applications. Traditional systems rely on post-processing of visual images and vehicle telemetry to estimate these metrics. Through in-situ sensing, these metrics can be calculated in near real time and made available to onboard science and engineering autonomy applications. This work aims to provide a deployable system for future planetary exploration missions to increase science and engineering capabilities through increased knowledge of the terrain.
Marchetti, Yuliya↗
REACCH - Reactive Electro-Adhesive Capture ClotH Mechanism to Enable Safe Grapple of Cooperative/Non-Cooperative Space Debris
USC’s Space Engineering Research Center (SERC) and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) have created a unique “octopus” tentacle end effector for robotic systems that uses formable electro-adhesion (EA) and Gecko adhesion capture cloth material. REACCH, or Reactive Electro-Adhesive Capture ClotH, supports soft capture of objects of any size, shape, surface finish or material on-orbit. To-date SERC/JPL have developed initial tentacles and backing spines that can control the EA/G material. Prototypes with two tentacles have been demonstrated and tested on a 3-DOF air bearing device in 1g in one plane of grip. The results show promise to further develop this new type of grappling mechanism able to make first soft contact with an object, with a technology that merges compliance and control elements for future on-orbit servicing and assembly missions. This paper presents the initial design and test results on this type of system.
Narayanan, Sriram↗