NEWS

2008 Robotics Recipients of Space Act Awards (10/28/2008) Space Act Awards were presented to current and former members of the Mobility and Robotics Systems Section, for contributions to technology and flight missions.
2008 NASA Honor Awards (07/23/2008) Several JPL roboticists are recipients of 2008 NASA Honor Awards.
Antal Bejczy to receive IEEE Robotics and Automation Award (07/22/2008) The IEEE 2009 Technical Field Award in Robotics and Automation will be presented to Antal (Tony) Bejczy for leadership and sustained contributions to a broad set of innovative robotic and automation techniques applicable to space research and on Earth.
JPL Employees Recieve IEEE Robotics & Automation Award (02/12/2008) Two current, and one former, JPL employee receive the 2008 award, recognizing contributions to robotics enabling effective autonomous operations of science investigations under extreme conditions on the planet Mars.
New Group Supervisor for Advanced Robotic Controls (01/07/2008) Dr. Adrian Stoica has been appointed as the new Supervisor for the Advanced Robotic Controls Group.
2007 Robotics Recipients of Space Act Awards (11/01/2007) Seven Space Act Awards were presented to fifteen current and former members of the Mobility and Robotics Systems Section, for contributions to technology and flight missions.
JPL's Role in the Constellation (10/30/2007) JPL will take the lead for specific robotic surface mobility efforts, in NASAs Constellation Program for the Moon. An example is the All-Terrain Hex-Limbed Extra-Terrestrial Explorer(ATHLETE).
Employee Awards for Fiscal Year 2007 (09/27/2007) Section 347 has presented year-end monetary awards to individuals and teams, in recognition of their hard work and accomplishments in the past year. The following is a list of recipients and accomplishments.
Up, Up and Away -- To Venus (08/27/2007) A team of JPL, ILC Dover and NASA Wallops Flight Facility engineers designed, fabricated and tested a prototype balloon for exploring the surface of Venus.
New MarsYard Unveiled (06/26/2007) A new MarsYard to test the mobility and autonomy of future Mars rovers was unveiled at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory on June 19, 2007, is six times larger than the previous MarsYard.
First Public Release of CLARAty Software (06/14/2007) CLARAty software is now available for public download.
2007 NASA Honor Awards (05/29/2007) Several JPL roboticists are recipients of 2007 NASA Honor Awards.
Smooth Landings (05/04/2007) In an effort to help future NASA missions land safely at more desirable but potentially perilous locales, JPL will develop a prototype of an automated, onboard system to enable pinpoint navigation along with the detection and avoidance of hazards during a spacecraft's descent to the surface.
In Memory of Homayoun Seraji (04/16/2007)
JPL Roboticists work with FIRST Students (03/13/2007) A high school robotics team sponsored by JPL was one of three teams capturing top honors at this year's Los Angeles regional FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) robotics competition.
NASA Mars Team Teaches Old Rovers New Tricks to Kick Off Year Four (12/28/2006) Robotics engineers have provided several new autonomy capabilities to the long-lived MER rovers on Mars. These include: visual target tracking, visual dust devil detection, manipulator collision avoidance using vision, and D* global path planning.
Learning To Drive The Mars Rovers (11/17/2006) Brian Cooper provides his perspective on driving the Mars Exploration Rovers.
Employee Awards for Fiscal Year 2006 (09/18/2006) Section 347 has presented year-end monetary awards to individuals and teams, in recognition of their hardwork and accomplishments in 2006.
ATHLETE Completes Field Trials (09/15/2006) The ATHLETE rovers have successfully completed a series of tests in the deserts of California and Arizona.
Robots on Mars: Special Issue of IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine (06/01/2006) Robots on Mars: Special Issue of IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine. The June issue (Vol. 13, no. 2) features nine articles on the Mars Exploration Rover Mission and its vehicles, Spirit and Opportunity, which landed on the Red Planet in early 2004.
Robots Demonstrated At JPL's Open House (05/21/2006) At this year's JPL open house, roboticists showcased a dozen systems, from handheld through car sized.
Theodore von Karman Lecture Series Presentation (05/11/2006) Ashley Stroupe and Brett Kennedy will present a talk entitled "Planetary Robotics: to Mars and Beyond", on May 11 and 12, 2006.
CLARAty Team Recieves JPL Center Best One NASA Peer Award (04/19/2006) Building on its prior award, the CLARAty team has been selected for the JPL Center Best One NASA Peer Award.
CLARAty Team Receives The One NASA Peer Award (03/09/2006) The One NASA Peer Award has been given to the multi-institutional development team for the Coupled Layer Architecture for Robotic Autonomy (CLARAty).
Space Foundation Hall Of Fame Induction (03/08/2006) JPL is recognized for its contribution to technology for the iRobot PackBot.
Norman Ahmad Interview (02/23/2006) An interview with Norman Ahmad, a new engineer at JPL working on the ATHLETE lunar rover prototype.
Section Members Win Space Act Awards (01/05/2006) Six Space Act Awards were presented to thirteen current and former members of the Mobility and Robotics Systems Section, for contributions to technology and flight missions.
Meet the First Woman to Drive on Mars! (11/09/2005) From working with prototype rovers in an Earth-bound sandbox, to driving on the actual red sands of Mars, Dr. Ashley Stroupe gets the best of both planets.
Employee Awards for Fiscal Year 2005 (09/21/2005) Section 347 has presented year-end monetary awards to individuals and teams, in recognition of their hardwork and accomplishments in the past year.
New Group Supervisors for Mobility & Robotic Systems Section (08/22/2005) Five new Group Supervisors have been announced to lead the reorganized Section 347. They are: Al Sirota, Issa A.D. Nesnas, Paul Backes, Larry Matthies, and Homayoun Seraji.
Helping NASA Provide Access to All (08/17/2005) Interns David Wright, Grace King and Thien Vu worked at JPL as part of the EXCEL program, jointly sponsored by NASA and the National Federation for the Blind. EXCEL stands for "Excellence through Challenging Exploration and Leadership," and seeks to provide blind youth with early employment experience in NASA careers.
New 347 Deputy Section Manager Selected (08/15/2005) Suraphol (Gabriel) Udomkesmalee has been selected as the new Deputy Section Manager of Mobility and Robotic Systems (347), effective Monday, 8/15/05.
Three JPL-led technology validation studies move forward (07/20/2005) Larry Matthies of JPL was selected for "Descent Image Navigation and Hazard Detection," technologies that will enable future missions to the moon, Mars, Europa, comets, asteroids, and other deep space destinations.
Spirit's Steep Climb to the Top (04/28/2005) Spirit has been getting a workout trying to climb the most difficult terrain encountered so far by the two rovers that landed on Mars in 2004. Like a hiker walking on loose scree, the rover's wheels began to slip near the top of the "Columbia Hills."