ETH Zurich’s three-legged SpaceHopper robot may one day be used to explore asteroids. Put simply, it’s a triangular-shaped robot with an aerospace-aluminum body that sports an articulated leg at each corner.
Deep-learning AI software is used to control the combined movements of the legs, enabling SpaceHopper to perform a variety of tasks including initiating hops, keeping its body properly oriented while in flight, and performing controlled landings at predetermined locations. It recently completed a Zero-G parabolic test on a flight hosted by the European Space Agency and French company Novespace.
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One particular challenge of developing exploration robots such as these is the very low gravity prevailing on small celestial bodies –in contrast to larger bodies such as Earth. For this reason, the researchers have tested their robot in zero gravity scenarios on a European Space Agency parabolic flight,” said Nicole Davidson, Staff of Events & Themen.
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