Control of intelligent robots in space

In view of space activities like International Space Station, Man-Tended-Free-Flyer (MTFF) and free flying platforms, the development of intelligent robotic systems is gaining increasing importance. The range of applications that have to be performed by robotic systems in space includes e.g., the execution of experiments in space laboratories, the service and maintenance of satellites and flying platforms, the support of automatic production processes or the assembly of large network structures. Some of these tasks will require the development of bi-armed or of multiple robotic systems including functional redundancy. For the development of robotic systems which are able to perform this variety of tasks a hierarchically structured modular concept of automation is required. This concept is characterized by high flexibility as well as by automatic specialization to the particular sequence of tasks that have to be performed. On the other hand it has to be designed such that the human operator can influence or guide the system on different levels of control supervision, and decision. This leads to requirements for the hardware and software concept which permit a range of application of the robotic systems from telemanipulation to autonomous operation. The realization of this goal requires strong efforts in the development of new methods, software and hardware concepts, and the integration into an automation concept.