Description: Metis Technology Solutions proposes to further mature its online, bi-directional, and robust collaborative SLAM and sensor co-registration technology known as Astrobee Localization and Collaborative Multi-layered Mapping (A-LCMM). The technology allows any Intra-Vehicular Activity (IVA) robot to collect data about its surrounding environment and share it with other robots via a central server to perform localization and mapping tasks. Sensors equipped to each IVA robot can be co-registered and fused with a collaboratively generated physical map of an environment which is stored on a central server. This fused multi-layered map of the environment consists of layers in which individual sensor data is registered with the physical map of the environment. The system is sensor and camera agnostic, meaning that any sensor and camera can be ingested by the system. This system not only eliminates the need for a ground team to manually update Astrobee maps, but also enables autonomous state assessment operations in space habitats which fills technical gaps identified in the Integrated System for Autonomous and Adaptive Caretaking (ISAAC) project. Developed hardware prototypes are to be used for validation in real-world environments by integrating the hardware and the software components of the system together. Beyond NASA, applications outside of Astrobee are not only feasible, but desirable. Improvements to the current state-of-the-art for collaborative SLAM not only impact Astrobee, but any system that uses multiple robots or SLAM in general. With the recent emergence of commercial space stations, autonomous cars, augmented reality (AR), and autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), there are many opportunities in which the technology can penetrate the market and make a ground breaking difference in the world of robot autonomy for years to come.

Benefits: Current IVA robot programs such as Astrobee have the potential to directly benefit from this technology. IVA robots must be able to perform autonomous state assessment activities such as surveillance, reconnaissance, and leak identification which future orbiting facilities such as Lunar Gateway will require. The developed technology will allow for Astrobee to advance its localization and mapping capabilities as well as provide real-time sensor data of the environment from multiple robots simultaneously.

Commercial space habitats like Axiom Station would directly benefit from this technology. IVA robots will play a critical role in automating tasks onboard commercial space habitats. With the ability to perform autonomous state assessment, surveillance, and reconnaissance of a space habitat, it significantly reduces the required human and financial resources required to maintain a space station.