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Curiosity Rover Being Upgraded With Autonomous Sensor Program

Posted by Unknown on from the intelligent-agents-strike-back dept.

DevotedSkeptic writes "Curiosity will be getting a software upgrade called Autonomous Exploration for Gathering Increased Science (AEGIS) which will allow it to take on the go photos to save precious time while exploring our red neighbor. Another interesting feature AGEIS may be able to provide is the ability for Curiosity to call home when it sees something interesting. It won't be a quick upgrade: AEGIS, which has been used on the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity since 2009, will be installed on Curiosity in the next nine to 12 months, Estlin said in an interview with InformationWeek. The AEGIS software, developed by JPL, was named NASA's 'software of the year' in 2011. Opportunity uses the software to take a wide-angle image with a low-resolution camera, then picks out rocks in the image to see if there's something of interest. If so, it takes a high-resolution image using an on-board science camera that's capable of zooming in on the subject. The software has potential beyond picture taking. Its see-and-react code could be adapted to other instruments." There's a paper on the software as used in the Opportunity rover.

18 of 45 comments (clear)

  1. language by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    increased science, what does that even mean?

    1. Re:language by jellomizer · · Score: 3, Funny

      It means more time doing actual science and less time waiting and looking at the boring stuff. Ok we did all the test we could on this rock. Ok lets find a different type of rock. Ok Lets do paper rock scissors on who gets to do analysis on the data and who will sit in front of the screen while the rover is moving to find a new type of rock.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    2. Re:language by Trepidity · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Science is sort of like Vespene gas, found naturally on Mars but can only be gathered with certain equipment.

      --
      10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10
    3. Re:language by Intrepid+imaginaut · · Score: 2

      The backronym is bad enough, but where can I get me one of these "science cameras"?

  2. Software updating on Mars... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Think bricking your phone was bad..

    1. Re:Software updating on Mars... by nospam007 · · Score: 5, Funny

      It's Patch Tuesday on Mars too.

    2. Re:Software updating on Mars... by K.+S.+Kyosuke · · Score: 2

      But is it a Mars Tuesday or an Earth Tuesday? And what happens when they mix it up one day?

      --
      Ezekiel 23:20
  3. Why not load it from the start? by Comboman · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It won't be a quick upgrade, AEGIS, which has been used on the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity since 2009, will be installed on Curiosity in the next nine to 12 months

    Curiosity launched on November 26, 2011. If Opportunity has been using AEGIS since 2009, why couldn't it have been included in Curiosity from the start instead of this 12 month download over a slow connection? It's bad enough that video game companies push stuff out the door and then rely on release-day patches but I expect better from NASA.

    --
    Support Right To Repair Legislation.
    1. Re:Why not load it from the start? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      The OS was used for landing the rover. It won't be doing that anymore.

    2. Re:Why not load it from the start? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      ...If Opportunity has been using AEGIS since 2009, why couldn't it have been included in Curiosity from the start instead of this 12 month download over a slow connection? It's bad enough that video game companies push stuff out the door and then rely on release-day patches but I expect better from NASA.

      Simple. To save weight. Them bits are heavy, cheaper to send them via radio than launch them with the craft.

    3. Re:Why not load it from the start? by DerekLyons · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Curiosity launched on November 26, 2011. If Opportunity has been using AEGIS since 2009, why couldn't it have been included in Curiosity from the start instead of this 12 month download over a slow connection?

      Off the top of my head, I can think of two reasons. First, until it landed Curiosity's computer served as the flight control computer and didn't even have it's full surface/science package installed. That's what the big software upgrade right after landing was all about - to clear out the flight control package and replace it with the surface/science routines. Second, I suspect they want some operational experience (on Opportunity) with the new system and some experience (on Curiosity) with the basic surface/science software package and some idea of how the hardware performs before committing to a new system. Odds are that Curiosity's baseline was frozen in 2010, long before sufficient information existed to write (let alone trust) the new software.
       
      Such a slow rollout is pretty common outside of commercial (consumer) software - because the costs of getting it wrong are so high. Especially in the case of something like Curiosity, which is a huge o' dollars of irreplaceable hardware with a limited lifespan and one shot at getting the science data. This isn't Ice Jelly Gummy Doughnut Candy with the fanboi's whining and pissing and moaning because their perfectly good hardware doesn't have the latest bling and threatening to move to another computer/phone/toy. FWIW, the software for the system I worked on in the Navy typically spent six months to a year installed on a trainer, followed by another six months installed on one or two hulls before committing it to the entire Fleet.
       
      Also, the article notes that it will be installed in, not over, the next nine to twelve months. Given that they replaced nearly the entire software package right after landing, the bandwidth available is more than sufficient to the task. Even so, they'll likely make use of most of that bandwidth on the important tasks of getting the science down rather than the secondary task of installing non essential software upgrades.
       

      It's bad enough that video game companies push stuff out the door and then rely on release-day patches but I expect better from NASA.

      Everything is easy to those that don't have to do the work and aren't accountable for the results.

    4. Re:Why not load it from the start? by tolgyesi · · Score: 2

      Due to the high radiation, they can not use high density memory chips. At first the landing control software filled it completely. Only after the landing did they replace it with the drivers for the motors and cameras so it could start moving. I suppose the actual upload does not need so much time, it must be a lot of hacking on the software in the meantime, testing and approval.

  4. good news for @SadMarsRover by veganboyjosh · · Score: 2

    Does this mean that @SadMarsRover will be able to get his instagram on again?

  5. Just wondering by Chrisq · · Score: 2

    Is there some form of "reset to factory defaults" option that is non-programmable - i.e. built into the firmware? I would imagine that it is a real nail-biting time for the developers if there is a possibility of bricking a mars rover!

  6. rocks by jamesh · · Score: 5, Funny

    "Hi NASA, I heard you like rocks so I took this picture of a rock. Hope it's good. Tell me if you want me to take a photo if I see another alien" - Curiosity

  7. Cartoon by ScaledLizard · · Score: 2

    http://www.heise.de/ct/schlagseite/2012/19/gross.jpg

    Translation: Water! Water! Sensors detect a waterlike substance! And where there's water, there could be life, too ...

  8. Re:Fire more drones!! by dontclapthrowmoney · · Score: 2

    OK I just realised I suggested hiring a marketing person for something. Please accept my sincere apologies.

  9. Dodged a bullet (or 2)... by slew · · Score: 2

    Sigh-of-relief... My first reading of this was, maybe Nasa was reusing Aegis for some sort of swords/plowshares purpose to somehow to control the rover. I guess that isn't the case, and it's just a fancy name for Rover-software 2.0...

    The reason that rang a bell with me was a bit of trivia I remembered. One of the first deployed Aegis system was the USS Yorktown. Apparently, the Aegis software was deployed on WindowNT which of course had lots of stability problems. Also the system software itself wasn't that great. For example, when someone accidentally entered some bad data, it caused a divide-by-zero error which caused the software to crash and the ship had to be towed back into port. I think Curiosity would have a hard time being "towed" back to port...

    Fortunatly, it isn't the same software, but Nasa has a propensity to tempt fate with unlucky symbols (Apollo 13, Challenger). Let's hope this isn't one of those times...