EXTREMELY LOW MASS SPHERICAL ROVERS FOR EXTREME ENVIRONMENTS AND PLANETARY EXPLORATION ENABLED WITH MEMS

Abstract

Surfaces (SMIPS) concept is aiming to create a low mass and highly flexible long range robot explorer for extreme environments such as planetary surfaces. A major driver of the concept is to be a complement to existing large wheel based robots with limited action ranges. The SMIPS introduces network based sensor systems with action radii of up to 100 km while weighing about 3.25 kg per robot. The robot diameter is 0.44 m. Several instruments can be carried by the robot. Micro electromechanical (MEMS) technologies are used to reduce the system weight and increase the system performance, especially regarding to instrumentation and power generation. This paper discusses the spherical robot concept in general and how it can be applied to multipoint sample return or other missions to Mars where the mission is enabled with direct entry of each miniaturized spherical robot. The robot system designed for entry from low Mars orbit weighs 5.5 kg including the heat shield and parachute. The impact during landing is estimated to 75-100 g. Nomenclature A area a acceleration B ballistic coefficient cD drag coefficient cP heat capacity d diameter Ekin kinetic energy F force g gravity acceleration Kn Knudsen number m mass Q & heat flux q & specific heat flux (per area) r radius