Professor Michael Milford, Director of the Centre, said the team was thrilled to contribute to the ambitious project. "Obviously, the Moon presents an environment unlike anywhere on Earth," he said. "QUT's world-class robotics expertise, especially in areas like robotic vision and navigation technologies, is a key capability we bring to the challenge of navigating on the Moon. There are no GPS satellites, the terrain is harsh and computing resources are limited. Our team is working on new approaches to robotic vision, scene understanding and localisation that will help keep Roo-ver safe and on course."
The ELO2 consortium, which leads the mission, highlighted the importance of QUT's role. ELO2 and Roo-ver Mission Director Ben Sorensen said it was "a privilege to have QUT as part of the Roo-ver Mission and the ELO2 Consortium". He added: "QUT is home to world-class testing facilities in Brisbane, and these are matched with the world-class expertise of their robotics researchers. Navigating the terrain of the lunar surface - 384,000 kilometres away - is an incredibly complex task, and the work Professor Peynot and his team are undertaking on Roo-ver's navigation systems will be vital to the Mission's success."
The Centre has expanded its research focus to environments that test the limits of autonomous systems. Professor Milford noted, "There are many parallels between operating on the Moon and in Antarctica, centre teams have operated drones and submersible robots as part of the Securing Antarctica's Environmental Future initiative."
Related Links
QUT Centre for Robotics
Mars News and Information at MarsDaily.com
Lunar Dreams and more
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