A Vision System For A Mars Rover

Brian H. Wilcox; Donald B. Gennery; Andrew H. Mishkin; Brian K. Cooper; Teri B. Lawton; N. Keith Lay; Steven P. Katzmann

doi:10.1117/12.968245

1 January 1987 A Vision System For A Mars Rover

Brian H. Wilcox, Donald B. Gennery, Andrew H. Mishkin, Brian K. Cooper, Teri B. Lawton, N. Keith Lay, Steven P. Katzmann

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 0852, Mobile Robots II; (1987) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.968245
Event: Advances in Intelligent Robotics Systems, 1987, Cambridge, CA, United States

Abstract

A Mars rover must be able to sense its local environment with sufficient resolution and accuracy to avoid local obstacles and hazards while moving a significant distance each day. Power efficiency and reliability are extremely important considerations, making stereo correlation an attractive method of range sensing compared to laser scanning, if the computational load and correspondence errors can be handled. Techniques for treatment of these problems, including the use of more than two cameras to reduce correspondence errors and possibly to limit the computational burden of stereo processing, have been tested at JPL. Once a reliable range map is obtained, it must be transformed to a plan view and compared to a stored terrain database, in order to refine the estimated position of the rover and to improve the database. The slope and roughness of each terrain region are computed, which form the basis for a traversability map allowing local path planning. Ongoing research and field testing of such a system is described.

Citation Download Citation

Brian H. Wilcox, Donald B. Gennery, Andrew H. Mishkin, Brian K. Cooper, Teri B. Lawton, N. Keith Lay, and Steven P. Katzmann "A Vision System For A Mars Rover", Proc. SPIE 0852, Mobile Robots II, (1 January 1987); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.968245

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