The LMRs' Role
Introduction
Astronaut Limitations
The Big Picture
LMR Advantages
In-field LMR Control
Habitat LMR Control
Problem 1: Complication
Subsequent Problems
LMR Families
LMR Chain of Command
Navigation
Communications
LMR Overdependency
Beyond Mission 2004
A Design Note
LMR Design
Systems Outline

    
LMRs

The First Problem: Overcomplication

The control system the astronauts will be using will be intuitive and straightforward. Ideally, this would allow the astronauts to focus more on analyzing sensor data and carrying out experiments.

Being substitutes for the astronauts, the LMRs must be capable of covering a relatively large surface area to extend the range and intensify the coverage of the astronauts. To achieve this, we intend to have a total of eighteen LMRs, capable of scanning and navigating their surroundings, available to our astronauts. This leads to several practical and logistical problems.

Perhaps the most evident of these problems is that of control. How would our astronauts manage to keep track of eighteen individual LMRs? The astronauts could receive assistance from Earth, but this is not an elegant solution to the problem. The objective is to allow our astronauts to keep track of the LMRs and to use the LMRs as tools to find life on Mars, not to be restricted by the need to guide and control eighteen seperate autonomous vehicles.

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Comments and questions to mission2004-students@mit.edu Last updated: 10 December, 2000