rgreid - Slashdot User

Comment Re:A very nice design, but is it patented? (Score 1) 31

by rgreid on Wednesday September 09, 2015 @03:59AM (#50485047) Attached to: Hedgehog Rovers Hop and Tumble In Microgravity

This design is well-suited for small bodies with low gravity, such as asteroids, comets and moons (up to 1/6th of Earth's gravity). For planets like Earth and Uranus, wheels are likely to be equally efficient.

Submission + - Hedgehog Rovers Hop, Tumble in Microgravity (nasa.gov)

Submitted by rgreid on Tuesday September 08, 2015 @05:29PM

rgreid writes: Prototypes of a new type of rover designed to explore the surface of comets and asteroids have been demonstrated recently by JPL and Stanford. Videos of the rovers in NASA's "vomit comet” show the Hedgehog prototypes performing hopping and tumbling maneuvers in a low-gravity environment. The low gravity and rough terrains found on comets and asteroids make driving with traditional rovers difficult and hazardous— the Hedgehog rovers are specifically designed to overcome these challenges and use the low gravity environment to their advantage. A last-resort “tornado" maneuver shows how the Hedgehogs could leap upwards if they get stuck in a sinkhole. The team's concept was previously covered in 2013, this recent work goes a long way to demonstrate that Hedgehog rovers could work on a real comet or asteroid.

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