NASA is looking to use Google's 3D smartphones as the eyes and brains of its robots aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
The robots, called Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites (SPHERES) are designed to eventually be used for dangerous missions outside the station, as well as for daily chores, according to The New York Post. The phones are being used by Google for its augmented reality initiative dubbed Project Tango, and will be included in a cargo mission that will launch on July 11th.
The space agency's robots were initially only able to achieve precise movements with help from small jets of CO2 when it was first brought to the ISS in 2006. The SPHERES can propel forward at about one inch per second, BBC News reported.
"We wanted to add communication, a camera, increase the processing capability, accelerometers and other sensors," said Chris Provencher, project manager of SPHERES. As we were scratching our heads thinking about what to do, we realized the answer was in our hands. Let's just use smartphones."
Phones bought from Best Buy were attached to the robots by astronauts aboard the ISS, providing the SPHERES with more sensing and visual capabilities. Google made further improvements to the robots by adding Tango's the smartphones' 3D cameras, designed to give the robots the ability to track motion.
The Tango phones also come with an infrared depth sensor that the robots will use to detect sharp angles in the space station. The sensors will also be used to create a 3D map that will help the robots travel to different modules, The New York Post reported. The phones, which come with space-tested batteries and plastic connectors, will be split open while mounted on the robots to make sure the touchscreen and sensors face outward.
"This type of capability is exactly what we need for a robot that's going to do tasks anywhere inside the space station," Provencher said. "It has to have a very robust navigation system."
The creators of the SPHERES were inspired by the droid Luke Skywalker used to train in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope when designing the robots.
