Space and Exploration Automation
Space-faring nations are actively exploring outer space and planetary bodies in our solar system both individually and as collaborators with other nations. In most endeavors, the inherent risk to human life has been mitigated by the use of automation and
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Edward Tunstel
Space-faring nations are actively exploring outer space and planetary bodies in our solar system both individually and as collaborators with other nations. In most endeavors, the inherent risk to human life has been mitigated by the use of automation and robotics to conduct space missions. Missions extending from low-Earth orbit to Earth’s moon and beyond to destinations throughout the solar system have been successfully conducted. Robots and human astronauts assisted by automated systems have been used on space missions. Infrastructure and service automation in the context of space missions are discussed in this chapter. Automation and robotics have played a substantial role in installing space exploration infrastructure such as Earth-orbiting satellites and space stations occupied for extended periods by astronauts as well as satellites that operate for extended periods in orbit around other planets. General background information about automation and robotics for exploration of space is presented. Challenges of applying automation in space and planetary environments are highlighted for robots that operate in Earth orbit, at the Moon, at Mars, and other
A wide variety of solutions to many problems in military and civil space programs are being addressed using some level of automation and robotics. Automation and robotics is personified by the synthesis and application of integrated electromechanical and computer systems that perform useful functions for engineering, science, or industrial applications. Space agencies around the world employ robotic systems instrumented with a variety of sensors and tools as surrogate explorers and automated workers on-orbit, as assistants to astronauts, on remote planetary surfaces, and throughout the solar system. Their systems and missions provide the infrastructure and service automation that enables access
69.1 Space Automation/ Robotics Background ............................ 1242 69.2 Challenges of Space Automation ............ 1243 69.2.1 Sensing and Perception for Manipulation and Mobility ..... 1244 69.2.2 On-Orbit and In-Space Robotics... 1246 69.2.3 Subsurface Robotics.................... 1247 69.2.4 Automation ............................... 1248 69.3 Past and Present Space Robots and Applications .................................. 1248 69.4 Future Directions and Capability Needs... 1250 69.5 Summary and Conclusion ...................... 1251 69.6 Further Reading ................................... 1251 References .................................................. 1252
destinations. A look forward to what the future will hold for further space and exploration automation is provided, including mention of advancements in technological capabilities that will be needed to accomplish more ambitious space missions.
to space and planet destinations throughout our solar system. Of particular relevance to automation for space exploration are sensing, perception, and control issues associated with operations in space environments and limited support from hum
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