NASA PLAR AGSE.txt
NASA PLAR AGSE
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* Cover the state of the AGSE as it was demoed:
  * what the state of the hardware was
  * what the state of the software was
  * the state of the autonomy & user control
  * the capabilities of the AGSE as it was demoed
* Cover exactly what happened for the demos:
  * demo one:
    * found sample from unknown position and orientation
    * found payload bay from unkown position and orientation
    * showed the need to level the platform or properly calibrate the height of the sample
  * demo two:
    * found sample from unknown position and orientation
    * found payload bay from unkown position and orientation
  	* showed properly calibrated sample height and good detection & recovery
  * demo three:
    * found sample from unknown position and orientation
    * found payload bay from unkown position and orientation
  	* showed the capabilites of the gripper to handle sample mis-alignment and still properly grasp and hold on to the sample
  * for all three demos:
  	* the sample was found (unknown pos & orientation)
  	* the payload bay was found (unknown pos & orientation)
  	* the sample was picked up
  	* the payload bay was opened
  	* the sample was inserted into the payload bay
  	* the payload bay was closed
  	* the UI showed the webcam feed from the agse
  	* the UI showed the state of the system through the LEDs
  	* the pause switch allowed the pausing of the AGSE in any state to be resumed when desired

 What was the scientific return from the AGSE?
 * Developed classification, segmentation, and detection algorithms and parameters for selected objects of interest
 * developed modeling language and GUI to design and develop the AGSE software and hardware using the latest in model-driven design and development.
 * wrote code generators to generate the c++ code which runs the AGSE; these code generators use the component-based software models that we developed for the AGSE as input and output most of the c++ code which runs the AGSE.  
 * the modeling language, code generators, and development toolchain we developed for the AGSE are not specific to the AGSE; they can be used to model any cyber-physical system and generate code which runs the CPS.

 What was the scientific value of the AGSE?
 * Developed an autonomous, modular, extendable platform for extra-terrestrial sample acquisition
 * Showed that it can simulataneously detect more than one object of interest and segment them properly
 * The sample description in the AGSE code (i.e. the filters) are modular and configurable, so that they can be used to describe any object(s) of interest; this allows the same code and the same hardware to be used repeatedly for different objectives

 Timeline for the AGSE:
 00-30s : Zero & Calibrate
 30-90s : Find Sample & open payload bay (simultaneous)
 90-150s : Find Payload bay
 150-180s : Grab Sample
 180-200s : Place Sample in Payload Bay
 200-240s : Close Payload Bay & rotate to safe position (simultaneous)