Robotic Explorer for Hypothesized Surfaces – Psyche Asteroid Robotic Explorer Mobility Concept

INSTITUTION

Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)

CLASS

Platinum Class (2025 – 2026)

STUDENT TEAM

ACADEMIC GUIDANCE

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Our mobility concept implements a symmetric tetrahedral layout to jump and roll across Psyche’s asteroid surface. The tetrahedral shape provides a rigid and stable frame allowing for a large central cavity for future payload and excavation hardware. Using 6 identical sets of extending legs, our explorer is capable of rolling to cover short distances and reach a precise locations, or jumping to cover long distances and overcome vertical obstacles.

 

This work was created in partial fulfillment of the Rochester Institute of Technology Capstone Course “MECE 497.” The work is a result of the Psyche Student Collaborations component of NASA’s Psyche Mission (https://psyche.ssl.berkeley.edu). “Psyche: A Journey to a Metal World” [Contract number NNM16AA09C] is part of the NASA Discovery Program mission to solar system targets. Trade names and trademarks of ASU and NASA are used in this work for identification only. Their usage does not constitute an official endorsement, either expressed or implied, by Arizona State University or National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of ASU or NASA.