Inflatable Robotics for Planetary Applications

The general purpose of designing a large, lightweight, inflatable rover is to allow the rover to travel over rocks instead of around them, as present planetary rovers are required to do. This can greatly increase a rover’s versatility, speed, and range. It has been estimated that in the 5% rockiest regions of Mars, approximately 1% of the surface is covered by rocks of 0.5 m or higher [4]. Early tests with scale models of inflatable rovers showed that this type of vehicle could easily scale rocks that were 1/3 the diameter of the wheels. Thus, a wheel size of 1.5-m diameter was chosen to allow the rover to traverse well over 99% of the Martian surface. In order to minimize mass and complexity, a three-wheeled vehicle was chosen with a wide wheelbase to enhance stability in rugged and steep terrain.