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AUTONOMY LAB X VERTEX

Through its partnership with Vertex, the Autonomy Lab uses this off-campus indoor drone facility to test and demonstrate newly developed control systems in real-world flight conditions. This capability supports the lab’s broader mission of developing data-driven techniques for greater autonomy in aerospace systems.

 

Facility specifications:​​

  • 12 Vicon V16 motion-capture cameras

  • Nearly 3,000 sq. ft of testing space

  • 17-foot ceiling

  • Fully padded floor within the safety-netted area

  • Padded fixed structural column

  • WindShaper equipped with 0816-series  fan modules

  • Dedicated control and observational room

Lab Overview

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  • Spacecraft proximity maneuver kinematics and dynamics testbed

    • ​Workspace: 9.4 m × 9.7 m × 2.7 m

    • Maneuver Kinematics Simulator

    • Integrated Flat-Floor Motion Dynamics Testbed

    • High-Precision Air-Bearing Table

  • Orbital lighting simulation

  • Real-time object tracking using OptiTrack system

  • Control Room with space dedicated to prototype system operators

  • Hardware integration and storage spaces

  • All lab components interconnected by WiFi

  • Network ports for remote connectivity available

Quanser Qdrone2

  • Quanser QDrone2 is an indoor quadrotor research platform with a carbon-fiber frame built for high-impact resilience

  • NVIDIA Jetson Xavier NX on-board computer runs machine-learning inference in real time

  • OptiTrack reflective markers and onboard IMU provide real-time position and yaw for state estimation

  • Used to validate a diffusion-model flight controller, replacing the position controller in a cascaded control architecture running at 100 Hz

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Spacecraft Kinematics and Dynamics Testbed

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Maneuver Kinematics Simulator

  • Planar, gantry-based simulator for relative orbital dynamics between two spacecraft.

  • Combination of motion table and pan-tilt mechanisms enable simulation of 3D viewing conditions.

  • Workspace: 5.5 m x 3.5 m

  • Pan-tilt mechanisms for test articles of up to 20 kg, supplied with 120 V AC and Ethernet.

  • Pan-tilt heads can be removed to support other mechanisms, such as robotic manipulators.

  • Enables sensor testing, GNC law verification, teleoperation experiments, etc.

  • Total 6 degrees of freedom.

​Maneuver Dynamics Simulators

  • Two air-bearing motion dynamics testbeds enable experiments of spacecraft maneuver dynamics and contact dynamics.
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  • 5.9 m x 3.6 m acrylic flat floor within the frames of the Maneuver Kinematics Simulator.

  • Enables coordinated use of gantry mechanism with air-bearing vehicles for kinematics/dynamics experiments such as robotic capture of debris objects.

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  • 3.6 m x 1.8 m tempered glass plate on optical bench with pneumatic vibration isolators.

  • Enables experiments in contact dynamics, spacecraft controls, formation flight, docking/capture, etc.

Planar Air-Bearing Vehicles

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Chaser and Target Air-Bearing Vehicles (ABV)

  • Planar air-bearing vehicles (ABV) for formation flight and docking / capture experiments

  • On-board computer: Intel i5

  • Aluminum frame allows easy attachment of capture tools, docking interfaces, sensors, robot manipulators, etc.

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Custom N2 thrusters

  • Propulsion: Custom Thrusters using compressed N2

  • Endurance: ~20 minutes

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Custom Reaction Wheel

  • Propulsion: Custom Thrusters using compressed N2

Lighting Simulation

  • Hilio D12 LED high-intensity light panel used to simulate orbital lighting conditions

  • Light panel is daylight balanced

  • Equivalent to 2000 W incandescent light

  • Intensity sufficient to oversaturate dynamic range of cameras, produce stark light/shadow differences, and blind laser range finders.

  • Lens inserts used to change the beam angle between 15° and 60°.

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OptiTrack System

  • 12-camera OptiTrack Prime 17W system tracks objects within the Autonomy Lab with sub-millimeter and sub-degree accuracy

  • Objects are defined by four infrared reflectors

  • Real-time streaming of tracking data on the lab network

  • Used in closed-loop control of the Maneuver Kinematics Simulator

  • For formation flight and docking experiments, OptiTrack can be used as stand-in for relative navigation sensors

  • For sensor testing, the OptiTrack data serves as ground truth

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