Flapping winged flight is well suited to the low density and highly viscous Martian atmosphere. The ExoFly demonstrator and mission concept illustrates the feasibility and usefulness of a mission to mars utilising such a rover mobility concept. Such a system would be capable of autonomous, efficient and robust flight in the lower Mars atmosphere, offering novel opportunities for 3D surface feature analysis from outcrop-scale visual data collection using this stable mobile platform. A demonstrator has been implemented for use in Earth atmosphere, capable of autonomous, stable and robust straight-line flight and hovering, as well as takeoff and landing capabilities. While adaptation to Mars conditions would require different physical characteristics, initial studies have found that this should not be an impediment to feasibility. The demonstrator has a total weight of 17 grams and is able to fly for 12 minutes with onboard energy storage and a pinhole camera payload. In Mars conditions, initial studies have identified a potential mission with ExoFly mass of 20 grams and range of 10-15 km with onboard solar cell recharging of the energy storage subsystem and a similar scientific payload. Further development could envisage additional equipment for, for example, aerial magnetic survey given availability of sufficiently miniaturized payload options. In addition, the design may be optimised for differing mission profiles emphasizing, for instance, range or hovering flight. Autonomous control using optical flow is envisaged, building on capability already implemented in the demonstrator. The use of this mission concept, allowing slow and stable airborne movement could provide previously unavailable capability in terms of 3D imaging of surface features in analysis of Aeolian and chemical erosion or study of the rock record through analysis of sedimentary structures or volcanic flow features. In addition to its particular suitability for use on Mars, ExoFly might be considered for use in any extraterrestrial atmosphere. This paper will explore the feasibility and potential scientific value of a mission concept using this technology. BACKGROUND
CITATION STYLE
Peeters, B., Mulder, J. A., Kraft, S., Zegers, T., Lentink, D., & Lan, N. (2008). Exo{F}ly: A Flapping Winged Aerobot for Autonomous Flight in Mars Atmosphere. In {ASTRA} 2008. Noordwijk, Netherlands. Retrieved from http://robotics.estec.esa.int/ASTRA/Astra2008/S05/05_05_Lan.pdf
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