Mars Rovers are big, expensive and prone to damage -- that's why a team from Carleton University is developing the Kapvik micro-rover. Kapvik is designed as a remote-operated sidekick to the primary rover, capable of being dispatched as a scout or to handle side-missions on its own. After the Spirit Rover was trapped in soft soil and lost, the smaller bots will include tethers to pull bigger robots out of trouble -- reducing the chances of losing millions of dollars worth of equipment (and breaking more nerd hearts than a cancelled Daft Punk show). Testing on the newly-unsheathed Kapvik continues, and we've got some sneaky behind-the-scenes footage purporting to be an early test of the bot's Pioneer navigation system after the break.
Update: Tim Setterfield from the program has very generously supplied us with a fresh video of the micro-rover as it traverses the sort of bumps that would make previous Mars Rovers run screaming to their mothers, check it out after the break.
Update: Tim Setterfield from the program has very generously supplied us with a fresh video of the micro-rover as it traverses the sort of bumps that would make previous Mars Rovers run screaming to their mothers, check it out after the break.
Continue reading Kapvik micro-rover is the useful sidekick Mars Rovers have always dreamed of
Kapvik micro-rover is the useful sidekick Mars Rovers have always dreamed of originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 19 Sep 2011 19:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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