The Mars Society India-IIT Bombay Rover Project

Responsibility: Executive Member and Head of Electrical Subsystem
February 2013 – July 2014
Faculty Advisor: Prof. P. J. Guruprasad, IIT Bombay

• Led a 10-member team of Mars Society India, IIT Bombay in the development of a prototype mars rover and field trials at Arkaroola Mars Robot Challenge Expedition in Australia
• Developed the control electronics and embedded logic for rover and robotic arm mobility as well as robust communication systems for long-distance feedback and control to accomplish various mission objectives such as terrain traversing, sample collection, astronaut assistance, and equipment servicing
• Participated in Arkaroola Mars Robot Challenge-2014, a 14 day expedition organized by Mars Society Australia and Saber Astronautics, to test the rover’s capabilities in Mars-analogue terrain and simulated scenarios
• Published a paper on the field testing at Arkaroola: A. Rajagopal, P. Bende, S. Yadav, R. Agarwal, A. Sathawane, A. Kshirsagar, M.C. Hemanth, N. Kumar, P. Gatkine, et al. Design, Modelling and Control of a 6 Degrees of Freedom Robotic Arm with specific applications in Planetary Exploration Missions, 65th International Astronautical Congress, Toronto, Canada, 2014
• Expedition Report: J. Clarke, J. Held, A. Dahl, N. Wheaton and the Arkaroola Mars Robot Challenge Expeditioners, Field Robotics, Astrobiology and Mars Analogue Research on the Arkaroola Mars Robot Challenge Expedition, Proceedings from the 14th Australian Space Research Conference, 2014

Snapshots of Arkaroola Mars Robot Challenge- 2014

Media Coverage: IIT-B student team sets foot on ‘Mars’ in expedition Down Under, The Times of India City-Mumbai