NASA 2019 Robotics Mining Competition

Poster Image
NASA 2019 Robotics Mining Competition Poster
Poster Session
A
Poster Number
05
Project Author(s)
Chloe Gan, Kevin Hoser, Sam Kreifels, Alex Schendel, Haley Davis
Institution
University of Portland | OSGC Undergraduate Team Experience Award
Project Description

The University of Portland (UP) Robotics Club and Capstone Team has designed a robotic mining system capable of operating on the Moon, for participation in NASA’s Robotic Mining Competition (RMC): Lunabotics. Held at the Kennedy Space Center, the RMC is designed to develop innovative robotic mining systems, following NASA’s efforts of returning to the Moon through the Artemis program. The program aims to bring humans closer to achieving a sustainable presence in space. In addition to the robotic system, teams are judged on K-12 STEM Outreach, Systems Engineering papers, and oral presentations. With new rules added to the competition, a complete restructure and redesign of a rover took place over the course of the 2019-20 academic. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the closure of the UP campus, manufacturing of the new rover and STEM Outreach efforts was not met. However, with the continued support granted from the Oregon Space Grant Consortium and the Dean of the Donald P. Shiley School of Engineering, the team developed new rover designs which established a solid foundation for next year’s team.