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About

Timothy P. Setterfield is a pioneering robotics and space exploration engineer whose work bridges autonomous navigation, sensor calibration, and planetary science. His primary research areas include lidar-inertial odometry, self-supervised learning for space robotics, and precision instrument positioning for extraterrestrial surfaces. Setterfield’s most impactful contribution is his work on the Planetary Instrument for X-Ray Lithochemistry (PIXL), a key instrument aboard NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover, which has garnered over 135 citations. He led the pre-flight geometric and optical calibration of PIXL, ensuring its ability to accurately map elemental compositions on the Martian surface. His feature-based scanning lidar-inertial odometry method, published in 2023, addresses motion distortion in scanning lidar, advancing mobile robot localization in GPS-denied environments. Setterfield has also demonstrated self-supervised learning for monocular distance estimation on the International Space Station, enabling future autonomous exploration. His autonomous sensor system for positioning instruments relative to unknown surfaces, used on Mars rover operations, showcases his talent for translating complex algorithms into mission-critical hardware. With over 200 total citations, Setterfield’s work is essential reading for researchers in space robotics, sensor fusion, and autonomous systems.