Planetary Utilisation Testbed
The Planetary Utilisation Testbed (PUT) at the ESTEC Robotics Laboratories has been constructed to help testing robotic devices for planetary surface operations. The testbed is composed of square 8x8 m terrain area filled with various sizes of sand, gravel and rock. The terrain has four different areas:
- a small crater
- a boulder field
- a sandy dune
- a gravel slope area
Uses
The PUTB is used for:
- Evaluation of Robotics Developments carried out by ESA and Industry for ESA
- Sub-system Testing for Planetary Exploration Robotics
- Public Relation Purposes
The PUTB is a major user of the lab Measurement Systems. The motion of robots on/over the terrain can be tracked using the RODYM system. The geometry of the terrain is routinely acquired by means of the RIEGL laser scanner.
In the past, the testbed has been used for:
- Support for development and Assessment of planetary mobile robots locomotion strategies (PROLERO, SOLERO, EXOMADER)
- Testing of payload accommodation on rovers for EuroMoon Project Support (LRM)
- Assessment of drilling techniques (MIRO)
- Assessment or localisation / automatic navigation technologies (Nanokhod, Payload Support for Planetary Exploration, PlanetMicroCam)
- Demonstration of rovers, aerobots in the course of the ASTRA and i-SAIRAS conferences