8151 / Study on estimation of traveling states using strain information on chassis of lunar and ...

Paper presented at the 16th European-African Regional Conference of the ISTVS

https://doi.org/10.56884/QUMN5668

Title: Study on estimation of traveling states using strain information on chassis of lunar and planetary exploration rovers

Authors: Sae Takano and Kojiro Iizuka

Abstract: Lunar exploration is underway around the world. The goals of the investigation are sustainable activity on the lunar surface and technological demonstration for Mars exploration. It is an effective method to land and move for investigation on the lunar surface by rovers. However, there is a possibility of a rover skidding due to the loose soil on the lunar surface. This phenomenon causes the rover to deviate from its intended course. Therefore, it is necessary to obtain the driving state in real time. We focus on the strain generated in the rover's chassis. The strain is caused by some kind of mechanical relationship between the rover’s wheels and the ground where it travels. It is therefore expected that the strain has a correlate closely with the driving state. The purpose of this study is to try estimating the driving state of the rover in real time by analyzing the strain value measured with strain gauges mounted on the chassis. The data is accumulated with changing voluntarily the slip ratio of a wheel connected to the chassis. By averaging and FFT analyzing of strain values, a correlate is established between the wheel’s slip ratio and the strain. The slip ratio is estimated from the correlate. The measured data verified that the average value of the strain was larger when the wheel traveled on a loose ground than on a rigid one. It was also verified that the vibration of certain frequencies was smaller when the wheel was running on a loose ground than on a rigid one. This result suggests that the type of surface can be assessed by measuring the strain on the chassis. Therefore, it is believed that the chassis strain and the ground are related. The slip ratio also appears to correlate with the strain.

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