University of Western Ontario

Published purpose

Modern planetary rovers and orbital instruments generate multiple data products. However, data transmission capacity from space to Earth is currently limited. This can result in observations not being made and experiments not being performed because there is no bandwidth available to get the data back to Earth. In order to maximize the return from field explorations, rovers and satellites of the future will need the ability to make independent decisions about what to explore and transmit preliminary analyses of data to Earth. This project aims to develop and field test algorithms and systems for autonomous scientific investigation. The techniques developed will also enhance terrestrial applications in agriculture, infrastructure monitoring and mining.