Projects Profile
Project Title
An image matcher for an FPGA based embedded system for next generation Mars exploration
Partnership
Dr Yiqun Zhu/Dr. Barrie Hayes-Gill/Dr. Matt Clark/Dr. Ian Stockford from The University of Nottingham
Professor Zhiguo Jiang from Beihang University.
Project Aim
The overall aim of this Partnership Grant is to design an image matcher suitable for use in an Entry Descent and Landing (EDL) system for a Mars rover mission with the aim of improving the EDL performance in terms of precision, reliability and intelligence. Put simply, an image matcher works by comparing a ‘live’ image (of the Mars surface) to existing, pre-recorded, images. If the image matches, then the EDL system knows that it is safe to land. If something unexpected appears in the picture then it can assess whether this poses a problem and instruct the EDL system to modify its descent path to a safer landing site which it can select.
Inspiration for the projects
Entry Descent and Landing Systems used in previous rover missions have not been able to identify unexpected hazards on a planetary (or lunar) surface which are believed to be the cause of several mission failures. For example, the British Mars Lander, Beagle 2, was due to touch down on the Mars surface on Christmas Day 2003 but went missing during touchdown. It is believed that the Lander crash landed onto the surface due to an unidentified object at the landing site. This project assesses the feasibility of providing an Entry Descent and Landing System with the intelligence, in the form of an image matcher, to identify hazards on a planetary surface which will enable it to modify its descent path and change to another, safer, landing site.
Commercial Potential and Further Development
It is expected that China’s Mars exploration programme will support further development to integrate the image matcher into the EDL system. However, we also expect that the outcome of the project could be used for commercial imaging applications.
