A comparative study of teleoperated and autonomous task completion for sample return rover missions

This research is aimed at identifying a minimal set of shared control behaviors that would optimize the execution of high-level tasks in terms of robot capabilities and operator engagement in sample return missions. Previous robotic missions to the Moon and Mars, such as Mars Science Laboratory, have relied on supervised autonomy and teleoperation with latency mission scenarios. While this has proven to be an effective approach especially with regard to minimizing mission risks, its scalability to multi-rover systems controlled by a single-operator poses challenges as meticulous planning on daily mission objectives is required and mission success relies heavily on robust, low-latency communication channels. As missions evolve to include multiple robotic platforms exploring celestial bodies farther than Mars, a paradigm shift in mission design approach is required. While completely autonomous exploration rovers may someday be commonly utilized, we aim to show that selectively adding high-level shared control behaviors to execute a sample return mission can significantly improve efficiency at an acceptable addition of risk and complexity.