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A Hybrid FPGA/Tilera Compute Element for Autonomous Hazard Detection and NavigationTo increase safety for future missions landing on other planetary or lunar bodies, the Autonomous Landing and Hazard Avoidance Technology (ALHAT) program is developing an integrated sensor for autonomous surface analysis and hazard determination. The ALHAT Hazard Detection System (HDS) consists of a Flash LIDAR for measuring the topography of the landing site, a gimbal to scan across the terrain, and an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), along with terrain analysis algorithms to identify the landing site and the local hazards. An FPGA and Manycore processor system was developed to interface all the devices in the HDS, to provide high-resolution timing to accurately measure system state, and to run the surface analysis algorithms quickly and efficiently. In this paper, we will describe how we integrated COTS components such as an FPGA evaluation board, a TILExpress64, and multi-threaded/multi-core aware software to build the HDS Compute Element (HDSCE). The ALHAT program is also working with the NASA Morpheus Project and has integrated the HDS as a sensor on the Morpheus Lander. This paper will also describe how the HDS is integrated with the Morpheus lander and the results of the initial test flights with the HDS installed. We will also describe future improvements to the HDSCE.
Document ID
20150008950
Acquisition Source
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Document Type
Conference Paper
External Source(s)
Authors
Villalpando, Carlos Y.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Werner, Robert A.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Carson, John M., III
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Khanoyan, Garen
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Stern, Ryan A.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Trawny, Nikolas
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
May 26, 2015
Publication Date
March 2, 2013
Subject Category
Spacecraft Instrumentation And Astrionics
Spacecraft Design, Testing And Performance
Electronics And Electrical Engineering
Space Transportation And Safety
Meeting Information
Meeting: 2013 IEEE Aerospace Conference
Location: Big Sky, MT
Country: United States
Start Date: March 2, 2013
End Date: March 9, 2013
Sponsors: PHM Society, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other
Keywords
Multicore

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