Tier-scalable reconnaissance: the challenge of sensor optimization, sensor deployment, sensor fusion, and sensor interoperability

Abstract

Robotic reconnaissance operations are called for in extreme environments, not only those such as space, including planetary atmospheres, surfaces, and subsurfaces, but also in potentially hazardous or inaccessible operational areas on Earth, such as mine fields, battlefield environments, enemy occupied territories, terrorist infiltrated environments, or areas that have been exposed to biochemical agents or radiation. Real time reconnaissance enables the identification and characterization of transient events. A fundamentally new mission concept for tier-scalable reconnaissance of operational areas, originated by Fink et al., is aimed at replacing the engineering and safety constrained mission designs of the past. The tier-scalable paradigm integrates multi-tier (orbit atmosphere surface/subsurface) and multi-agent (satellite UAV/blimp surface/subsurface sensing platforms) hierarchical mission architectures, introducing not only mission redundancy and safety, but also enabling and optimizing intelligent, less constrained, and distributed reconnaissance in real time. Given the mass, size, and power constraints faced by such a multi-platform approach, this is an ideal application scenario for a diverse set of MEMS sensors. To support such mission architectures, a high degree of operational autonomy is required. Essential elements of such operational autonomy are: (1) automatic mapping of an operational area from different vantage points (including vehicle health monitoring); (2) automatic feature extraction and target/region-of-interest identification within the mapped operational area; and (3) automatic target prioritization for close-up examination. These requirements imply the optimal deployment of MEMS sensors and sensor platforms, sensor fusion, and sensor interoperability.

Tier-scalable reconnaissance: the future in autonomous C4ISR systems has arrived: progress towards an outdoor testbed

“…and at the University of Arizona (2009 -present) has devised a NASA award-winning (NASA Board Award 2009), widely publicized, [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] and Caltech-patented [16][17][18] mission paradigm, termed Tier-scalable Reconnaissance (TSR), as the foundation for autonomous C 4 ISR systems of the future. Originally devised for autonomous robotic space exploration of planetary surfaces, the tier-scalable reconnaissance paradigm integrates multi-tier (space, atmosphere, surface, subsurface) and multi-agent hierarchical mission architectures (Fig.…”

Automated Global Feature Analyzer - A Driver for Tier-Scalable Reconnaissance

“…AGFA is currently undergoing field testing aboard groundbased robotic platforms (Fig. 9) [4,5] and will be tested in the near future aboard airborne platforms, such as helicopters and blimps, as part of the tier-scalable reconnaissance mission test bed at Caltech [4]. As for the spaceborne perspective, AGFA will be tested on satellite and orbiter imagery, and for a close-up (microscopic) ground perspective, it will be tested on microscopic images, such as those delivered by the Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) Spirit and Opportunity (e.g., [26]).…”

“…Figure 9. 4WD remote controllable robotic platform as a representative mobile ground-tier agent of the tierscalable reconnaissance mission test bed at Caltech (from [4,5] …”

The Biological Oxidant and Life Detection (BOLD) mission: an outline for a new mission to Mars

“…Therefore, to maintain the size and cost constraints of the proposed BOLD mission, the individual systems that make up the carrier spacecraft and in particular the individual lander probes ideally must themselves be miniaturized, if the overall mission payload is to remain within the mission parameters. In fact, given the overall weight constraints for each probe, the miniaturization requirement has to extend down to the component/sensor level, potentially warranting the use of Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) as described in Fink et al 27 MEMS devices, due to their inherently low mass, size, and power, are ideal for both space and sensor network applications. A number of MEMS devices have been specifically developed for the purpose of robotic planetary exploration.…”