Risk-Aware Mars Rover Operation Tool with Autonomous Terrain Classifier and Path Planner

The greatest single source of risks for Mars rovers is terrain. These risks are currently managed by a labor-intensive process in which rover operators carefully examine the terrain and plan a path to avoid any potential hazards. This poses a challenge, particularly for the operation of an MSL (Mars Science Laboratory)-class rover, because it must be very risk-averse in order not to lose the asset, while it already requires a significant amount of labor due to the complexity of the rover. Hence, it is important to develop a software tool that helps operators to detect and avoid terrain hazards efficiently and reliably.