See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/224999876

Lunar Rover with Multiple Science Payload Handling Capability

Conference Paper · January 2008

Source: DLR

CITATIONS READS
2 1,306

4 authors, including:

Aravind Seeni
Universiti Sains Malaysia
146 PUBLICATIONS 165 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE

All content following this page was uploaded by Aravind Seeni on 17 May 2021.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 Lunar Rover with Multiple Science Payload Handling
Capability
Aravind Seeni,
Research Engineer,
Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics, German Aerospace Center,
82234 Wessling, Germany.
[email protected]

Bernd Schäfer,
Project Manager,
Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics, German Aerospace Center,
82234 Wessling, Germany.
[email protected]

Bernhard Rebele,
Research Engineer,
Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics, German Aerospace Center,
82234 Wessling, Germany.
[email protected]

Rainer Krenn,
Research Engineer,
Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics, German Aerospace Center,
82234 Wessling, Germany.
[email protected]

A rover design study was undertaken for exploration of the Moon. Rovers that have been
launched in the past carried a suite of science payload either onboard its body or on the
robotic arm’s end. No rover has so far been launched and tasked with “carrying and
deploying” a payload on an extraterrestrial surface. This paper describes a lunar rover
designed for deploying payload as well as carrying a suite of instruments onboard for
conventional science tasks. The main consideration during the rover design process was the
usage of existing, in-house technology for development of some rover systems. The
manipulation subsystem design was derived from the technology of Light Weight Robot, a
dexterous arm originally developed for terrestrial applications. Recent efforts have led to
definition of a mission architecture for exploration of the Moon with such a rover. An outline
of its design, the manipulating arm technology and the design decisions that were made has
been presented.

performing experiments on interesting locations after

1. INTRODUCTION landing with the available rover science instruments
and tools. The Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) Spirit
Ever since man began exploring extra-terrestrial
and Opportunity carried instruments like Moessbauer
bodies, numerous surface missions with mobile
spectrometer, Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer,
robots have followed. This includes rover missions
panoramic, microscopic cameras and abrasion tools.
such as the Lunokhod-1, Lunokhod-2, Sojourner,
The payload remains integrated to the rover body
Spirit and Opportunity [1][2][3][4]. Many other
throughout the mission. No payload has been
surface robotic missions are being planned for the
deployed on the surface on a certain site yet for
next decade. Some of the missions are the Mars
conducting experiments. It is thought that a “drop and
Science Laboratory, ExoMars, Chang’e-2 and
go” approach of using the robot just as a mobile
Chandrayaan- 2 [5][6][7][8].
platform for rapid deployment of payload on several
The earlier rover missions were designed to
locations near landing site, in addition to the
follow a “science-on-the-go” approach. This involves
requirements traditional “science-on-the-go”

1
methodology would be necessary to be performed by the lunar surface during the mission. The primary
a robot in future missions. Such a mission can not objectives of the rover include deployment of portable
only return science data with instruments available payloads such as a pair of Radio-frequency
onboard, but also help in science return through Demonstrators (RFDs) for radio-frequency
portable payloads. Examples of conceptual portable transmission on lunar surface, a 30-kg In-situ
payloads are an in-situ resource utilization Resource Utilization Demonstrator (ISRU-D) as well
demonstrator, radio frequency demonstrators that as a minimum of five close-up analyses with a
need to be transported by the robot and then dropped combination of Moessbauer spectrometer (MS),
on the lunar surface. The robot after surface Alpha-Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS), Rock
deployment of payload may help with the payload’s Abrasion Tool (RAT) and Microscope camera (MC)
deployment function and operation. instruments on potentially interesting locations. All
Payload portability could be realized using the these primary objectives shall be completed within
robot’s mobility and manipulation property. The total mission duration of one lunar day. The
payload could be carried using a flexible robotic arm secondary objectives assumed will be performed on
and then driven, transported using the robot’s wheels availability of excess time, power and other resources
or legs. In this paper, a conceptual surface robotic after achieving primary objectives. The secondary
mission to Moon with a lander-rover combination has objectives are the continuation of instrument
been identified to accomplish some new science placement on additional locations as required based
objectives and realize possibilities of payload on resource availability. The preferred operational site
portability with a mobile robot. The lander and rover on the lunar surface would be on the near-side where
are assumed to carry a suite of payload devices. Some sunlight is predominantly available most of the time.
devices onboard the lander will be carried and The rover operations start during the start of lunar day
transported across by the rover and then deployed on and end by the end of lunar night. The latitude and
the lunar surface. The rest need not be deployed, but longitude traverse locations are science derived. Some
needs close-positioning on different lunar rock or soil of the aspects that affect the mission architecture are
samples. the type of surface landing, mobile platform,
The institute has a long-standing reputation in telecommunications strategy and power subsystem
technology and systems development for terrestrial design of the mobile platform (Table 1). As listed in
robotic applications as well as on-orbit space Table 2, the requirements drive selection of a
experiments. With past experiences of developing particular subsystem and its design impact.
technology [9][10] that includes the Light Weight
Robots (LWR) [11], it was determined to perform this
study on using existing technology to be spun-off to 2.1. Landing Strategy
space applications. A lunar rover design study was A lander-rover combination is assumed to be
conducted and some identified system concepts uses launched from Earth. The lander retro-rocket
available off-the-shelf technology. The selection of propulsion system would offer a soft-landing platform
the scientific payloads was motivated by an earlier for the rover as well as the different science systems
study conducted together with the German space stowed in the body. Without a lander, soft-landing of
company Kayser-Threde. This paper summarizes the the mission payloads will add to the complexity of the
design of the lunar rover and the conceptualized rover and portable payload systems design. The rover
mission architecture for a potential mission to Moon. is stowed inside the lander’s body and will egress to
The manipulation subsystem design is given the lunar surface through deployable ramps. Other
particular focus since the LWR technology was than the rover, the ISRU-D and one of the RFDs are
analyzed for using as the rover’s manipulator for the also mounted inside. The availability of the lander
application of payload portability. An overall view of offers flexibility in mission design with regards to
the design of the rover and subsystems is also communication architecture. A stationary platform as
provided. the lander could help in efficient data transfer than
from the movable source itself. Since the landing site
is on the near-side, implementation of a hybrid
2. MISSION REQUIREMENTS communication architecture comprising of both rover
direct-to-Earth as well as rover-lander-Earth relay
The primary science objectives required traverse
will be realistic.
of a mobile platform for a minimum total of 100 m on

2
 Arm end-effectors with EEE
Mod 2 passive modules

EEE EEE EEE

MOD2 MOD2 MOD2

MB

APX
Science instruments
RAT mounted on SPID

MC
ROVER BODY

(1) RFD
body-
mounted

(1) RFD ISRU-D

stowed on stowed on
lander body lander body

Portable payload to be transported

and deployed on surface

Fig. 1 Systems Architecture showing the different science components integrated to rover system. The
manipulator or robotic arm is fixed to the front of the rover’s body. One RFD is fixed to the lander and other
carried onboard the rover. The ISRU-D is also stowed inside the lander. Both devices available onboard the
lander – ISRU-D and RFD – would be later deployed by the robotic arm. The arm end-effectors – scoop,
puller, SPID along with their EEE modules – are also shown. The SPID carries four science instruments to be
able to position on samples. The rover also carries a pair of stereo PanCams to aid in navigation.

Table 1 Key mission architecture and rover system trades

Trade Options assessed Option selected Rationale for selection
Less design complexity; lander can provide
Landing strategy Lander-rover, Rover-only Lander-rover a soft-landing house for the rover and its
portable and integrated payloads
Science platform Wheel, tracks, legs,
Wheels High stability and speed capacity
mobility hybrid
Less mission complexity, less number of
Number of science
One, two, swarm One objectives, traverse distance requirement
platforms
less.
Sunlight available, solar cells are highly
Science platform Solar arrays, primary
Solar arrays efficient with up to 30% conversion
power generation batteries, RTG, fuel cells
efficiency achieved at present
Telecommunications Rover direct-to-earth, Enables maximum flexibility in rover
Hybrid
strategy rover-lander-earth, hybrid uplink/downlink communications

performance on lunar regolith. Less traction gives rise

2.2. Mobile Platform to more slip, and thus cause problems with
A wheeled rover is chosen as a mobile platform localization and navigation. However, traction for a
for the mission. A statically and dynamically stable wheeled system is not a problem on lunar surface.
mobility configuration, in this case, is very important This is due to the properties of the lunar regolith. The
owing to lifting and holding high loads at arm end. lunar regolith density varies with depth from over 1.0
Traction is important for the rover’s mobility g/cm3 at surface to 2.0 g/cm3 at 20 cm below the

3
surface. Its mean porosity is 40-43 % by volume. The 2.4. Payloads
cohesive bearing strength is density dependant and The total allocated mass of the payload carried by
there varies with depth from 0.03 N/cm2 at the surface the rover at the beginning of surface operations is
to 0.3 N/m2 at 20 cm depth. Therefore, traction is not estimated to be 17.7 kg. The allocated mass of the
a problem [12][13] and a wheeled configuration is rover instruments and tools (MS, APXS, RAT and
selected. Due to this reason, with regards to the MC) is 2.3 kg with margins. A detailed description of
problem of wheel slippage, the mobility performance the payload listed below is not required within the
can therefore be accounted to minimal influence to context of this paper and hence only an overall view
the rover’s navigational performance. The next quest is provided.
lies in the number of wheels. A six-wheeled
configuration is selected as it offers greater stability 2.4.1. In-situ Resource Utilization Demonstrator
and obstacle traverse capability than a four wheeled The feasibility of in-situ resource utilization of
configuration. lunar regolith would be analyzed with the ISRU-D. A
preliminary estimated mass of 15 kg was allocated for
the device. It would be accommodated onboard the
2.3. Payload Deployment and Instrument Placement lander and would be deployed after landing by the
Platform rover on the lunar surface. The traverse rover distance
The rover would deploy portable payloads such as requirement is 2 m from the lander. The ISRU-D is a
ISRU-D and RFDs. After their deployment processes, self-operational device equipped with 10 ovens. The
the rover traverses different locations and performs rover would collect regolith with the RM onboard a
science investigations with a suite of instruments and SSF. The regolith samples are the transferred in to the
tools – MB, APXS, RAT and MC. A platform for ovens’ inlet one by one. Each oven requires 400 g of
manipulating all objects for both payload deployment regolith and hence a total of 4200 g of regolith would
and placement tasks is therefore necessary. All the be required to be collected by the rover. The ISRU-D
tasks are thought to be complex and require high later heats up the regolith for chemical analysis and
dynamic capacity. A simple 5-DOF manipulator as elemental composition detection.
the infamous Instrument Deployment Device [14] of
MER will not be able to perform such tasks. It was 2.4.2. Radio Frequency Demonstrator
found that a robotic manipulator derived from A pair of RFDs would be also deployed on the
existing in-house LWR technology would be capable surface with the help of rover arm. The RFDs enable
of performing the tasks. demonstration of wireless, radio-frequency
transmission between two stationary points on Moon.
Each RFD would be deployed on surface after
Table 2 Requirements and rover system design allowing a clearance of 60 m between them. The
impacts RFDs are equipped with self-deploying antennae
Requirement System impact within an overall cylindrical body. After placement
Platform type selection with robotic arm on surface, the device senses
100 m traverse, touchdown and deploys four antennae. The RFDs are
1 lunar day mission Power availability, landing
period and time fully autonomous in deployment and operation.
duration
Navigation system
Rover and subsystems 2.4.3. End-effectors and exchange modules
Limited stowage The applications of deployment of ISRU-D and
volume
volume inside the RFDs, close-positioning of science instrument as well
Subsystems stowage
lander as regolith collection by the robotic arm requires
configurations
Mounting rover and multiple end-effectors to be carried onboard the rover
sensitive payload within to satisfy all requirements. Three end-effectors will be
Launch capacity carried onboard the body of the rover. They will be
lander structure as
necessary, low rover mass exchanged or disposed off to the lunar surface as
Multiple portable Multiple end-effector to be necessary. The three end-effectors are the Puller,
payload manipulation carried Scoop and Scientific Payload Interface Device
Manipulating arm load (SPID). They serve deployment, regolith
capacity collection/filling and instrument placement
Payload portability End-effector exchangeability respectively. The SPID carries four instruments that
are arranged like the fingers of a human hand. The
High dexterity, autonomy
Power consumption arrangement can also be compared to be similar as in
design of the Position Adjustable Workbench [15] of
ESA’s Beagle 2 Mars lander [16].

4
 Regolith Filling SPID instruments
on SSF and close-positioning
back to Lander

RFD-2 deployment ISRU-D

(60 m from RFD-1) deployment
(2 m from X)
X (Lander)

RFD-1 deployment
(30 m from X)

Fig. 2 Illustration of rover’s tasks on lunar surface

To facilitate end-effector exchange, End-effector

Exchange (EEE) modules are fixed to arm end and all 3. ROVER OPERATIONS
end-effectors. An active module attached to the
The lander accommodating the rover, instruments
robotic arm end helps in locking with any of the
and demo packages (Fig. 1) is assumed to be
passive modules of the end-effectors that would be
launched to Moon that is followed by a controlled
originally stowed onboard the rover’s body. The
descent to the surface. The top-level stages of
location of stowage of the end-effectors is in front of
operations are the rover egress, ISRU-D deployment,
the rover and enables the manipulating arm to steer
RFDs deployment, sample collection/filling in ISRU-
within this workspace for all lodging and dislodging
D ovens and instrument close-positioning (Fig. 2).
purposes.
The rover would perform systems checkout and
egress to the surface through ramps deployed from
2.4.4. Sample Storage Facility
the lander’s body. After reaching the surface, the
The SSF is an integral part of the rover’s body
rover retrieves the ISRU-D that is stowed inside the
structure that would help in storing the collected
lander and deploys it on the surface. The ISRU-D
regolith for ISRU-D analysis. The SSF is a hollow,
transfer operation and deployment on lunar surface
cylindrical pipe integrated within the rover’s box
would then be followed by deployment of two RFDs.
vertically. A hopper on top minimizes spill-over of
In launch configuration, one RFD would be carried by
regolith during transfer from arm’s scoop to the SSF.
the rover onboard and deployed immediately on the
The SSF volume required was estimated to be for
surface after ISRU-D deployment process. The other
storing the 4200 g of regolith required. The volume of
RFD will be available on the lander and transferred
the cylinder is as low as 0.00145 m3 (1.5 liters) to
by the rover manipulator (hereafter RM) after
allow storage of 4200 g of regolith. The density of
returning to the lander and manipulated. It is preferred
lunar regolith is assumed to be 2900 kg/m3 [17] for
to have the second RFD onboard the lander due to
the estimation. The SSF has integrated piezo-electric
space limitations on the rover’s body. Both RFDs will
mechanisms for a mechanical transfer of the regolith
be placed in opposite sides of the lander at a distance
from the cylinder to the arm’s scoop through the
of 30 m to enable a distance of 60 m between both.
facility’s outlet. The piezo-mechanism supports
After the initial deployment of ISRU-D and two
regolith transfer to the scoop in low gravity. Also
RFDs, lunar regolith collection and transfer to ISRU-
sensors arranged along the radii of the outlet provide
D operation will be performed. The ISRU-D is
information about scoop location below it.
designed with ovens that heat regolith and analyses its
composition. Regolith collection is performed by the
rover at different locations and fills them in the ovens.

5
After oven-filling process, the rover will traverse The navigation of rover would be performed with
different regions on lunar surface and position PanCams mounted on the rover’s mast assembly. For
instruments (MS, APXS, RAT, MC) closely to rocks all these tasks, it is necessary to have a robotic arm to
and soil. A step-by-step rover activity and time be carried onboard the rover. The requirement is
allocation list is provided in Table 3. cumulative time duration of 217 hrs for completion of
primary objectives. An average traverse speed of the
rover of 15 cm/s is assumed in this estimation
Table 3 Tasks time allocations overview
process. An excess of 100 hrs is available for batteries
Elapsed recharge, rover obstacle negotiation and data relay.
time for
Rover activity completion
[Earth 4. ROVER SYSTEMS
hours] The rover’s body is a rectangular box measuring
System checkout and rover egress from 0.80 m in length, 0.48 m in width and 0.30 m in
12.0
lander to surface height (Fig. 3). The box encloses the avionics,
Panoramic imaging of area near batteries, thermal control components and sensors
0.5
landing site within the hollow structure. It holds the solar arrays
Collect ISRU-D from lander by the RM and the stowed RM on top in launch configuration.
and deployment of ISRU-D at 2 m 1.0 The rover base-plate provides a body clearance of 240
(approx.) from lander feet mm from the surface. The maximum height of the
Panoramic imaging at ISRU-D location 0.5 rover from the wheel base to the top of the deployed
Deploy RFD available onboard to the mast assembly is 1.2 m. The maximum width of the
surface at 30 m (approx.) from the 15.0 rover between the edges of the solar arrays is
lander approximately 1 m. The maximum longitudinal
Imaging of area and deployed antennae length of the rover is estimated as 1.5 m. The SSF is
1.0
check integrated within the body of the rover. The hopper
Drive back to lander 12.0 and the outlet extend above and below the box partly.
Collect RFD stowed in lander with RM 1.0 The SSF’s total height is 0.6 m. All the four science
Rover drive for 30 m (approx.) and instruments are mounted to the end of a dexterous,
deploying the second RFD similar to anthropomorphic RM that is itself mounted to the
the first, preferable at a location in the front of the rover’s body. To aid end-effector
15.0
opposite direction of first RFD location exchange possibility, all the end-effectors are initially
with 60 m (approx.) clearance between mounted in front of the rover’s body structure to
both allow the arm to manipulate and grasp them. All the
Imaging of area and deployed antennae end-effectors are stowed here. The location can be
1.0
check reached conveniently by the robotic arm for end-
Arm end-effector replacement. The effector exchange. The arm is fixed on the front sides
puller is dislodged and thrown to the 1.0 to prevent any possible contact with the payload
surface. The scoop is lodged to the end. mounted on the front of the body. In stowed
Drive and area survey for presence of configuration, it is mounted on the top of the body
12.0
required amount of regolith and maintains a small clearance to not contact the
Scooping of 4200 g regolith samples fragile solar arrays. A pair of PanCams is mounted on
12.0
and collection onboard the rover’s SSF top of the mast assembly and assists in navigation of
Rover driving to ISRU-D and transfer the rover and arm, along with a pair of HazCams in
24.0
of regolith to its ovens with scoop front. The mast assembly along with the PanCams,
RM end-effector replacement of scoop unlike mounting symmetrical to the rover’s body, is
with SPID. The scoop is dislodged and 1.0 mounted on the body sides. This approach is thought
thrown to the surface to have no impact on the rover’s navigation
Driving of lunar rover to different capabilities, since it depends entirely on the
locations, investigations of lunar rocks orientation of the cams. The communication antennae
108.0
and soil with instruments (12 times in are permanently deployed and relay data to the lander
each vicinity at 180 minutes each) or to an Earth station. A concise rover subsystem
summary is provided in Table 7.
TOTAL 217.0

6
 objects within a given workspace and high autonomy.
Also, it has to be robust and reliable. The joint
actuator should be highly efficient. The heat emitted
from motors, electronics should be maintained
minimum for low thermal control requirements. The
power consumption levels of these motors should be
also low.

4.2.2. System requirements

The arm has 7 degrees of freedom that enables
transportation and in-situ instrument positioning of
science payload. The arm consists of 7 joints arranged
in an R-P-R-P-R-P-P configuration (R=Roll,
P=Pitch). For lifting a payload stowed on to the
lander – ISRU-D and RFD – PanCam images will be
used to provide the exact 3D location and the surface
Fig. 3 Configuration of lunar rover with RM normal of the intended contact location with respect
to the rover’s coordinate frame. For positioning of
4.1. Mobility subsystem SPID instruments on to a rock or soil sample, a pair
The mobility subsystem of the rover consists of of wide-angle stereo imaging HazCams is provided at
wheels, wheel actuators, bogies, steering mechanisms, the rover’s front. In the mission layout, all transport,
motor controllers, sensors and electronics. The sampling, science operations concerning RFDs
proposed configuration for the mobility assembly is a deployment, ISRU-D deployment, ISRU-D regolith
6x6x4 configuration. The rover has 6 wheels of filling and instrumental science on lunar rocks are
which 6 are motored for longitudinal tasks to be handled by the RM. These tasks are
forward/backward motor. 4 wheels on the rear and thought to be quite complex and time-consuming
back are steered with an additional identical motor. considering the nature of the payload to be handled.
All six motors provide a nominal rover speed of at For example, deploying the ISRU-D and RFDs
least 15 cm/s. On the whole, six brushless DC motors requires precision to be able to be lifted remotely
power the mobility subsystem. Surface terrain from the narrow attachment points. Another
characteristics, rocky or smooth, greatly influence the requirement is the ability of the arm to place any
mobility performance. Since the wheel actuator drives instrument or end-effector on a target within one
the rover during the whole mission, the performance command cycle.
of it in terms of output power, energy consumption
and efficiency should not be compromised. The motor
selected for the rover is the in-house developed 7 joint (circled) arm
RoboDrive [9]. The wheels are supported by two
parallel longitudinal bogies on the sides and a traverse
bogie at the back. There are eight Robodrive motor
variants available that is selected for a particular
application based on load and power requirements.
The nominal torque and speed of this motor are 900
mNm and 8000 rpm respectively. The other variants
can be used for applications such as the joints of the
RM. Different variants of the Robodrive motor is
selected for powering the RM joints.

4.2. Manipulation subsystem

Fig. 4 Stowed configuration of RM. This
4.2.1. Operational requirements configuration allows low storage volume
The manipulator is used as a payload requirement on top of the rover’s body.
“transporting” and “positioning” device. The design
of the manipulator or the arm of the robot has to
4.2.3. RM design and operations
satisfy many operational requirements like high load
The proposed robotic arm is based on the well-
capacity at arm end, modularity for end-effector
known LWR technology [9][18][19]. LWRs are being
exchange, high dynamic capacity for manipulating
developed commercially for many terrestrial

7
applications. With some modifications, such exchanged with the SPID. A “use and throw” strategy
technology could also be used for the lunar rover. The is followed for the end-effector i.e. they would be
RM is mounted in the front of the rover’s body. It thrown to the lunar surface after use. The arm is
facilitates transport of payload devices and necessary to have highly modular for end-effector
manipulation of lunar rocks and samples. It is exchange purpose. This is possible through the EEE
integrated with one of the following end-effectors – mechanism available as active and passive
Scoop, puller and SPID – and could be changed components in the arm and end-effectors respectively.
depending on task requirements. Changing end- The scoop collects lunar regolith for the ISRU-D
effectors i.e. lodging and dislodging is possible ovens. The rover navigates to different locations on
through an End-Effector Exchanger (EEE) the lunar surface and different samples are collected
mechanism. This mechanism is mounted at the arm’s from different locations through the scoop. They are
end and acts as an interface between the RM and one poured into the inlet of a storage facility available on
of the fixed end-effectors. A maximum reach distance top of the rover. The regolith is then transported to the
of 1.4 m is possible for close-positioning of SPID ISRU-D and the collected samples are taken in fixed
instruments. The instrument positioning configuration quantities by the scoop from the outlet of storage
is shown in Fig. 6. The width of each link is 0.08 m. facility at the bottom of the rover. The regolith is then
The main components of the RM are its joint poured into the inlet of the ovens. To determine the
actuators, links, sensors and avionics. The motor in feasibility of the robotic arm to and successfully reach
the joint actuator is the Robodrive (Fig. 5) proposed the top and bottom of the SSF onboard the rover,
also for mobility wheel drive with slight some preliminary pose calculation and determination
modifications. For lunar applications, the power of joint angles were performed. It was found that the
requirement is low due to relatively low motor loads RM’s configuration is capable of reaching the targets
in lunar gravity. Assuming an average power (Fig. 7, Fig. 8). In the future, the pose has to be
requirement of 4 W for each motor including its optimized for the best possible configuration to be
electronics and sensors, the total requirement would achieved for each maneuvering task.
be 28 W. The various specifications of the RM are
summarized in Table 4.

Fig. 6 Deployed configuration of RM. This pose is

achieved for close instrument positioning fixed to
the SPID. There are four instruments and tools
Fig. 5 Internal components of the rover RM’s necessary for in-situ sampling fixed to the SPID –
joint derived from LWR and brushless DC MB, APXS, RAT and MC.
Robodrive motor technology.

A thorough knowledge of the robotic arm’s

The 15 kg ISRU-D will be unstowed from the motion dynamics is necessary prior to its intended
lander by the RM, carried and deployed to the surface operations. It is expected that the arm joints’ physical
with the help of “puller” end-effector. Regolith parameters such as damping, friction, and stiffness
collection is done with a scoop. During launch, the would change over time with variations in
arm is stowed above the rover’s body to occupy less temperature, velocity of motion and material
volume with lander’s stowage area (Fig. 4). Also the degradation in extreme lunar environment.
puller is pre-mounted to the arm’s end (not shown in
figures). This can be later dismounted and exchanged
with a scoop. The scoop is again dismantled and

8
 It is envisaged that after providing safe thermal
control structure, lubrication, active thermal cooling,
the motor could be well within the safe operational
limits with high performance. During the later phases
of the project, these joints will be validated for
operation in very higher temperatures.

Table 4 Specifications of the RM derived from

LWR technology
Specification Dimension
Load capacity at low
15 kg
velocity
Load-to-weight ratio ~1:1
Degree of Freedom 7
Fig. 7 RM in Scoop-over-mill configuration Axes R-P-R-P-R-P-P
(Scoop not shown). This arm pose allows Maximum arm reach
1.4 m
transferring the regolith from scoop to the SSF’s distance
hopper inlet. During the transfer process the outlet Robodrive integrated with
Actuator
of the SSF remains closed. After the collection is Harmonic drive gear
complete, the rover moves to the ISRU-D to fill the Joint sensors Angle: 2, Torque: 1
ovens. 6-DOF Force/Torque
Wrist sensor
sensor
Electromagnetic safety
Brake
brake
Error Tolerance 1 mm
Repeatability 50 µm
Positional accuracy 1.5 mm
Position, Torque,
Control
Impedance control

4.3. Power subsystem

The rover was designed to function between the
latitude ranges of 45°N and 45°S. The location of
operation is on the near-side where there is presence
of sunlight. The power system should be designed to
provide energy for the various experimental processes
planned in quick successions within the limited
mission timeframe. The total duration of mission of
Fig. 8 RM in Scoop-below-mill configuration. The one lunar day implies that the rover power will die
scoop (not shown) that is fixed to the arm’s end out by the start of lunar night. Primary batteries, in
approaches the outlet of the SSF. Sample this case, are least suitable because they are heavy
collection with the scoop is initiated after detection and no continuous power is generated. Radioisotope
of the scoop exactly below the outlet. This is done thermoelectric generators or RTGs are most
through optical sensors located on the SSF’s preferable for higher latitudes. But they are expensive
outlet. The regolith fall from the container to the and have low technological maturity. In addition,
scoop in low-gravity condition is supported by adequate thermal control techniques must be provided
piezoelectric actuation mechanism that will be to dissipate the excess heat. This affects the simple
integrated within the body of SSF. thermal control architecture and increases the overall
system mass. The most preferred option would,
The two-jointed ROKVISS onboard the ISS therefore, be solar arrays that utilize available solar
offered results [20] on the Robodrive joints’ energy for power generation. Now-a-days,
performance under ISS conditions where the improvements in achievable conversion efficiencies
operating temperature on-orbit ranges between -20°C of solar cells have been made.
to +30°C. Currently, tests have indicated that the
joints are operational up to a temperature of +135°C.

9
 Table 5 Estimated power requirement of rover Table 6 Preliminary rover system design budgets
subsystems
Nominal Total
Margin
Average Peak Payload Nos. Mass Mass
System [%]
Power [W] Power [W] [kg] [kg]
Mobility 19.8 118.8 Instruments and
Manipulation 33.0 132.0 Tools
Mast Assembly and MC 1 0.5 10% 0.6
PanCams 17.6 17.6 APXS 1 0.3 10% 0.3
Microscope camera 3.3 10.0 MS 1 0.5 10% 0.6
APX Spectrometer 1.65 10.0 RAT 1 0.7 10% 0.8
Mössbauer Spectrometer 2.2 10.0 RFD* 1 4.0 20% 4.8
Rock Abrasion Tool 12.1 25.0 Supporting
Scoop 2.2 10.0 hardware
EEE-active 1.1 8.0 Thermal
- 1.0 15% 1.2
Communication system 27.5 27.5 insulation
Thermal
Avionics, HazCams and - 1.0 20% 1.2
other sensors hardware
5.5 5.0
End-effectors
Thermal subsystem 20.0 40.0
and Interfaces
SSF mechanisms 16.0 16.0 EEE active
1 1.0 20% 1.2
(fitted in RM)
TOTAL 161.95 429.9 Puller (with EEE
1 2.0 20% 2.4
passive)
The subsystem power requirements are listed in Scoop (with
1 2.0 20% 2.4
Table 5. The subsystem uses a standard 28V DC bus. EEE passive)
Ni-Cd rechargeable, secondary batteries will be used SPID (with EEE
1 2.0 20% 2.4
to power the other systems. The rover solar array passive)
consists of triple junction cells made of Gallium
Indium Phosphide, Gallium arsenide and Germanium SUBTOTAL 10 14.5 17.9
(GaInP2/GaAs/Ge). They offer the best efficiencies
with current values above 30%. The arrays are Total
designed to be foldable to occupy less volume. The Nominal Margin
Rover Subsystem Mass
design allows the arrays be folded half-way and can Mass [kg] [%]
[kg]
be fully deployed on the surface. The entire array area
is divided into four panels. One of the panel remains Mobility 24.4 20% 29.3
on top of the box, whereas three panels are hinge- Manipulation 12.2 20% 14.6
actuated and deployable. During rover motion, the HazCams, Sensors
7.1 20% 8.5
wheels could potentially kick-off dust in low lunar and Avionics
gravity as can be seen from the experience with Structure and SSF 16.3 20% 19.6
Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle. The dust could settle Power 16.3 20% 19.6
on the top of the solar arrays. However, taking into Thermal Control 3.2 20% 3.8
account of the rover velocity, such situations are not Communication 6.1 20% 7.3
expected and therefore, dust removal tools are not
required. SUBTOTAL 85.6 102.7

4.4. Structure and Thermal Control subsystem Mass with

Total Nominal
The average temperature variation of the lunar System Component Margin
Mass [kg]
surface in the mid-latitudes varies from 220 K to 254 [kg]
K. The monthly variation range near the equatorial Payload 14.5 17.9
latitudes is ±140 K [21]. All lunar locations Rover 85.6 102.7
experience an equal day and night period of 13.6 TOTAL 100.1 120.6
Earth days, except at the poles. The noon-day Sun
traces a path on the equatorial surface with essentially
no seasonal variation [22]. The nominal incident solar *
Only one RFD will be mounted on the rover. The
flux on the surface is 1371 W/m2 [23].
other RFD would be stowed onboard the lander

10
 Table 7 Rover subsystems summary
Subsystem Description
Six-wheeled chassis. 6 wheels actuated for forward/backward
Mobility Type
motion, 4 wheels steerable
Dexterous, anthropomorphic, 6-DOF arm. Technology
Manipulation Type derived from LWR technology. R-P-R-P-R-P-P configuration
with Robodrive actuated joints
Bus Voltage 28V
Solar array type 4 panels mounted on top of body. 3 panels deployable, 1 fixed
Power
Solar cell type GaInP2/GaAs/Ge
Battery type Ni-Cd
Active system Thermoelectric coolers
Thermal control
Passive systems Aluminum, aerogel coatings
Hybrid: Relay through lander, direct rover-to-earth
Architecture
communication
Communications 8/256 kbps forward/return to/from lander, 1 kbps rover return
Bandwidths
to lander
High-gain antenna type Phased array
Navigational PanCams 2 stereo imagers mounted on mast assembly
sensors HazCams 4 wide-angle stereo cams
Command and Data
Microprocessor Radiation hardened PC – e.g. RAD750 PowerPC [26]
Handling
Body material Carbon-fiber reinforced plastic composite
Structure
Body layer Double-layered with insulation

Temperature on the surface varies widely and absorptivity of 0.09 is selected. An insulation
depending on location and is influenced by the day- barrier made of Silica Aerogel is provided between
night cycle. Since the mission is planned for one lunar the inside and outer shells of the rectangular box.
day operations after assuming rover operations to start During the vast amounts of time of work, the rover
on the first lunar day, the day-night cycle variations generates large amounts of heat internally within the
need not be taken considered for thermal control various subsystems. An active thermal system is
system design. The structure and thermal subsystem provided with thermoelectric coolers in the avionics,
will be designed only for bearing the hot temperature. communication, batteries, instruments, as well as the
On a lunar day, the mean temperature would be as motors part of the mobility and manipulation
high as 380 K and can rise to a maximum of 400 K. subsystem.
The surface emissivity factor of the sun exposed
surface is 0.9 [21][24]. In addition to the solar
environmental conditions, the structure should be able 4.5. Communication subsystem
to withstand axial (~15 g) and planar (~10 g) launch A robust communication system design is
loads within the launcher. The body of the rover is a necessary for a mission of this kind, since any failure
rectangular hollow box made of carbon-fiber- could lead to no science return. A “hybrid”
reinforced-plastic composite. The box is made up of a communication architecture is proposed for relaying
double shelled layer. The avionics systems and data through a stationary platform (lander antenna) as
batteries are mounted within the inner shell. During well as direct rover-to-Earth. This architecture is
all the hot lunar days, sufficient thermal control suggested to enable maximum flexibility. Whilst data
should be provided for this warm box to prevent sent from Earth shall be from one ground antenna, the
overheating of electronics, sensors and other sensitive return link has two options. One option is through
devices. lander relay and another direct-to-earth
The rover is provided with a reflective coating on communication by onboard transmitter. The only
the exterior of the body as a passive control. Two problem with this architecture was envisaged is the
properties of importance are the IR emissivity and mass increase in the system. For direct-to-earth link,
solar absorptivity. Coatings on the surface should be the rover would carry a steerable high-gain antenna
able to effectively radiate internally generated heat. and an X-band transceiver. A phased array high gain
Also, low absorptivity is required for minimizing the antenna is selected, since it enables faster and better
effects of variations in solar radiation. A polished precise steering [25] than a parabolic reflector.
Aluminum film having emissivity properties of 0.03

11
 Operations like instrument placement cannot be http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/masterCatalog.do
performed within lander’s line-of-sight. Hence direct- ?sc=1970-095A
to-Earth communication is accommodated as for [2] Grayzeck, E., “Luna 21/Lunokhod 2,” NSSDC
operational redundancy. Here the presence of an Master Catalog Search, National Aeronautics and
orbiter is not envisaged and therefore neglected. For Space Administration, 2008 [online database].
relay through lander, the rover would require an URL:
omni-directional antenna (VHF/UHF). This antenna http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/masterCatalog.do
is mounted on top of the rover’s body as high as ?sc=1973-001A
possible to maintain maximum line of sight distance [3] Cook, R. A., and Spear A. J., “Back to Mars: The
with the lander. It can also receive commands directly Mars Pathfinder mission,” Acta Astronautica
from Earth at a low data rate (X-band). The envisaged Vol. 41, No. 4-10, August-November 1997, pp.
uplink/downlink bandwidths are 8/256 kbps 599-608 [online journal]. DOI: 10.1016/S0094-
respectively. 5765(98)00069-1.
[4] Cook, R. A., “The Mars exploration rover
project,” Acta Astronautica
4.6. Systems design budgets Volume 57, Issues 2-8, July-October 2005, p.
The rover and payload preliminary mass budget is 116-120 [online journal].
provided in Table 6. Table 7 summarizes the rover’s DOI:10.1016/j.actaastro.2005.03.008
subsystems. Infinite Possibilities Global Realities,
Proceedings of the 55th International
Astronautical Federation Congress, Vancouver,
5. CONCLUSION Canada, October 2004.
[5] Volpe, R., “Rover Technology Development and
An overview of the rover designed for both
Mission Infusion Beyond MER,” Proceedings of
payload deployment and instrumental science has
the IEEE Aerospace Conference, Big Sky, MT,
been provided. An advanced dexterous arm derived
USA, 2005 [online database].URL:
from existing technology for carrying out the various
http://hdl.handle.net/2014/37528
complex tasks has been described. The payload and
[6] Barnes, D., Battistelli, E., Bertrand, R., Butera,
rover subsystems all require space-qualified
F., Chatila, R., Biancio, A. D., Draper, C., Ellery,
components. Detailed design on the SSF is a task that
A., Gelmi, R., Ingrand, F., Koeck, C., Lacroix,
has been planned for appropriate regolith storage and
S., Lamon, P., Lee, C., Magnani, P., Patel, N.,
transfer. New navigation strategies for increased
Pompei, C., Re, E., Richter, L., Rowe, M.,
autonomy on surface by the arm and the rover have to
Siegwart, R., Slade, R., Smith, M. F., Terrien, G.,
be addressed. This would be a goal for the institute
Wall, R., Ward, R., Waugh, L., and Woods,
and advancements have been made with existing 3D
M., “The ExoMars rover and Pasteur payload
image processing technology.
Phase A study: an approach to experimental
astrobiology,” International Journal of
Astrobiology, Vol. 5, No. 3, 2006, pp. 221-241
6. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS [online journal]. DOI:
Some parts of the work presented in this paper 10.1017/S1473550406003090.
were conceptualized and performed by the Institute of [7] Kumar, V., “Indo-US Cooperation in Civil
Robotics and Mechatronics during the project “Lunar Space,” Proceedings of the 2nd Space
Robotic Payload”, under sub-contract to the space Exploration Conference, Houston, Texas, USA,
company Kayser Threde Munich (DLR Contract No. 4-6 December 2006 [online database]. URL:
3464757 with support of German Space Agency). The http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/exploration/
authors would like to acknowledge and express their main/2nd_exploration_conf.html
thanks for their support. The authors are also grateful [8] Liu, X., and Ding, T., “Investigation of
to Manfred Schedl for offering his thoughts during Coordinated Control of Lunar Rover
the course of work. Locomotion,” Abstracts of the 9th ILEWG
International Conference on Exploration and
Utilisation of the Moon, ICEUM9/ILC2007,
7. REFERENCES Sorrento, Italy, 2007, pp. 136.
[9] Hirzinger, G., Brunner, B., Butterfaß, J., Fischer,
[1] Grayzeck, E., “Luna 17/Lunokhod 1,” NSSDC
M., Grebenstein, M., and Landzettel, K., Space
Master Catalog Search, National Aeronautics and
Robotics – Towards Advanced Mechatronic
Space Administration, 2008 [online database].
Components and Powerful Telerobotic Systems,
URL:
Proceedings of the 6th International Symposium

12
 on Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and I., and Sporer, N., A Mechatronic Approach to
Automation in Space (i-SAIRAS), Montreal, the Design of Light-Weight Arms and
Canada, 2001. Multifingered Hands, Proceedings of the IEEE
[10] DLR-RM, DLR Institute of Robotics and International. Conference on Robotics and
Mechatronics Status Report 1997-2004, Part 1, Automation, San Francisco, USA, 2000, pp. 46-
November 2004 [online database]. URL: 54.
http://www.dlr.de/rm- [20] Rebele, B., Schaefer, B., Albu-Schaeffer, A.,
neu/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-3757/ Bertleff, W., and Landzettel, K., “Robotic Joints
[11] Albu-Schaeffer, A., Haddadin, S., Ott, Ch., and Contact Dynamics Experiments: Lessons
Stemmer, A., Wimboeck, T., and Hirzinger, G., Learned from ROKVISS,” Proceedings of the
“The DLR Lightweight Robot: Design and "9th Advanced Space Technologies for Robotics
Control Concepts for Robots in Human and Automation (ASTRA) Workshop,” ESTEC,
Environments,” Industrial Robot: An Noordwijk, The Netherlands, November 2006.
International Journal, Vol. 34, No. 5, 2007, [21] Heiken, G. H., Vaniman, D. T., and French, B.
pp.376-385. M., Lunar Sourcebook: A User’s Guide to the
[12] Johnson, S., and Chua, K., “Properties and Moon, Cambridge University Press, USA, 1991,
mechanics of lunar regolith,” ASME Journal of pp. 34 – 36.
Applied Mechanics, Vol. 46, No. 6, 1993, pp. [22] Tobery, E. W., Pantano, D. R., Dottore, F., Ryes,
285-293. J., and Creel, R., “Heat Rejection Concepts for
[13] Ellery, A., An Introduction to Space Robotics, Radioisotope Power Systems On the Lunar
Praxis Publishing Ltd, Chichester, UK, 2000, Surface,” 4th International Energy Conversion
pp.33. Engineering Conference and Exhibit (IECEC),
[14] Baumgartner, E. T., Bonitz, R. G., Melko J. P., AIAA Publication, San Diego, California, 26-29
Shiraishi L. R., and Leger P. C., “The Mars June 2006.
Exploration Rover Instrument Positioning [23] ESA NEXT Team, “NEXT Lunar Lander with
System,” Proceedings of the 2005 IEEE in-situ Science and Mobility: Phase A Mission
Aerospace Conference, Big Sky, Montana, 2005 Study, Lunar Environment Specification,”
[online database]. URL: NEXT-LL-LES-ESA (HME)-0001 (1), 20
http://hdl.handle.net/2014/40500 February 2008, pp.10.
[15] Pullan, D., Sims, M. R., Wright, I. P., Pillinger, [24] Pantano, D. R., Dottore, F., Tobery, E. W., Geng,
C. T., and Trautner, R., “Beagle 2: The S. M., Schreiber, J. G., Palko, J. L., Utilizing
Exobiological Lander of Mars Express,” SP-1240 Radioisotope Power System Waste Heat for
Mars Express: A European Mission to the Red Spacecraft, NASA GRC Report, NASA/TM—
Planet, ESA Publications Division, ESTEC, 2005-213990, Cleveland, Ohio, October 2005
Noordwijk, The Netherlands, 2004, pp. 176-178. [online database]. URL:
[16] Wilson, A., “Mars Express: A European Mission http://gltrs.grc.nasa.gov/reports/2005/TM-2005-
to the Red Planet,” SP-1240, ESA Publications 213990.pdf
Division, ESTEC, Noordwijk, The Netherlands, [25] D. Bapna, M.C. Martin, and W.L. Whittaker,
2004. "Earth-Moon Communication from a Moving
[17] Boldoghy, B., Kummert, J., Varga, T., Szilagyi, Lunar Rover," Proceedings of the 42nd
I., and Berczi S. Z., “Practical realization of International Instrumentation Symposium, May
covering lunar buildings for ensure levelled 1996, pp. 613-622 [online database]. URL:
temperature environment,” Proceedings of 38th http://www.ri.cmu.edu/pubs/pub_888.html
Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, League [26] BAE Systems, “RAD750”, Microelectronics
City, Texas, March 2007 [online database]. URL: Reliability & Qualification Workshop,
http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2007/pdf/1 Manhattan Beach, CA, USA, December 2008
380.pdf [online database]. URL:
[18] Albu-Schaffer, A., Bertleff, W., Rebele, B., http://www.aero.org/conferences/mrqw/2002-
Schafer, B., Landzettel, K., and Hirzinger, G., papers/A_Burcin.pdf
ROKVISS - robotics component verification on
ISS current experimental results on parameter
identification,
Proceedings of IEEE International Conference
on Robotics and Automation, May 2006, pp.
3879 – 3885.
[19] Hirzinger, G., Butterfass, J., Fischer, M.,
Grebenstein, M., Haehnle, M., Liu, H., Schäfer,

13

View publication stats