System Requirements Document

Introduction

Purpose of the document

The aim of this document is to enumerate a set of system requirements.

Scope of the document

The document identifies a set of system requirements to be considered as a main guidline in a rover design process. The guideline is based on ERC rules, URC rules and Team’s considerations discovered in an analysis phase.

The document presents requirements in the following sections:

• Safety requirements
• Teleoperations and telemetry requirements
• General rover requirements
• Robotic arm maneuverability requirements
• Power consumption requirements

• Mission-related requirements:

  • Scientific mission requirements
  • Maintenance mission requirements
  • Collection mission requirements
  • Autonomous traversal requirements

Acronyms

Acronym matrix

Acronym	Full form	Description
AR	Acceptance Review	A phase in which the product is verified on customer’s infrastructure
COTS	Commercial, Off-The-Shelf	A product that can be purchased/obtained freely in the market and utilized in a project
CDR	Critical Design Review	A development phase in which the project is reviewed critically, ideally by the external entity. It is to check compilance with requirements and test a so-far developed device.
FOV	Field of View	An area that is perceived by a camera
HMI	Human-Machine Interface	Any interface that facilitates sending/receiving commands to/from software or hardware
SW	Software	A set of commands to be executed on a computer, expressed in a human-readable format
SFR	Simple Fetching Rover	A type of a Mars rover that supposed to quickly transport an object, e.g. a boxed specimen, to the ground control

Terms and definitions

Terms and definitions

Term	Definition
Ground control	A place where a team can send commands to the rover and receive feedback data.
Rover	A remotely controlled robotic platform.

Applicable documents

Applicable documents

Reference ID	Title	Short document description
[ERC-2018]	European Rover Challenge 2018 - STUDENT Rules	Rules and formula of ERC2018

Requirements

Note

Consider split the requirements identified below into groups

General information

Whenever the document mentions a word, it supposed to be mean the following:

• shall - any requirement that contains the word shall is considered to be mandatory.
• should - any requirement that contains the word should is considered to be optional yet expected in the final implementation.
• may - any requirement that contains the word may is considered to be a nice to have feature but not critical for the overall mission.

Each identified requirement shall be given a unique identifier that follows the pattern:

(?<REQ>\w{3})-(?<CATEGORY>\w{4})-(?<NUMBER>\d{4})(/(?<TASK>\w{4}))?

Group label definitions:

• REQ - the group is a keyword for ‘Requirement’, denoted as ‘REQ’
• CATEGORY - the group accepts 4-character category name
• NUMBER - the group accepts 4-digit identification number
• TASK - the optional group that assigns the requirement into a specific subgroup

Note

Examples:

• REQ-SAFE-0010: Requirement - Safety requirements - ID 10
• REQ-SCIE-0010/GEOL: Requirement - Scientific mission requirements - ID 10 / GEOLogical task

[SAFE] Safety requirements

Safety requirements table

ID	Requirement	Description
REQ-SAFE-0010	The rover shall be equipped with an emergency stop button	The stop button shall provide the very basic level of safety in case of the rover is out of control
REQ-SAFE-0011	The emergency stop button shall be red	The red stop button is the industry-known standard for marking safety buttons
REQ-SAFE-0012	The emergency stop button shall be Commercial, Off-The Shelf component	The COTS stop button provides the greatest reliabilty
REQ-SAFE-0013	The emergency stop button shall isolate the batteries from the system by single button hit.	The stop button shall cut the power circuit and keep it in such state until the rover is reset. The only exception is batteries installed in laptops that are not mandatory to be separated.
REQ-SAFE-0014	The emergency stop button shall be installed in an easily accessible location. The location shall not inflict any injurers to anyone who hits the button.	The requirement is to provide minimal safety standard to anyone who has to kill the rover abruptly.
REQ-SAFE-0015	The emergency stop button shall withstand hard hit	Anytime the button is hit, anyone who hits it must be assured the button acts correctly.
REQ-SAFE-0020	The rover shall be equipped with an activity indicator	The activity indicator informs everyone in the vicinity the rover is operational and may/may not cause injuries to the people around.
REQ-SAFE-0021	The activity indicator shall be visible in radius of 10m	The activity indicator warns people around the rover is operational.
REQ-SAFE-0022	The activity indicator shall blink or flash	Non-continuous visual signals are easily noticable by humans thus safer.
REQ-SAFE-0023	The activity indicator should be of either yellow, orange or red color	These colors are usually associated with danger and keep people vigilant.
REQ-SAFE-0024	The activity indicator should be COTS	This is to provide reliability
REQ-SAFE-0025	The activity indicator should be active 5 seconds before the rover performs any action.	During this time the rover should remain still.

[TELE] Teleoperation and telemetry requirements

Teleoperation and telemetry requirements

ID	Requirement	Description
REQ-TELE-0010	The rover shall use one of the following wireless communication systems: Radio amateur bands, WiFi 2.4GHz, WiFi 5GHz, ISM bands, Other frequencies if an appropriate license is acquired	The Team shall meet communication requirements
REQ-TELE-0020	The Team shall prepare a Radio Frequency Form.	The From shall provide wireless system information, frequencies used and RF spectrum.
REQ-TELE-0030	Telemetry data should be stored for further evaluation	Logs such as power parameters, accelerations, send/received commands can become handy for further rover development and debugging.
REQ-TELE-0040	Team may be asked to provide access to power circuits in non-invasive manners to measure power consumption of the rover independently by the jury.	This is to provide an exteral logging system.

[GNRL] General rover requirements

General rover requirements

ID	Requirement	Description
REQ-GNRL-0010	A rover shall be a standalone, mobile platform.	No thethers are allowed
REQ-GNRL-0020	The mass of the rover should not exceed 50-60kg	The heavier rover will be penalized and lighter one rewarded.
REQ-GNRL-0030	It should be possible to inscribe the rover into an envelope shape of 0.75m diameter	General advise when building a rover
REQ-GNRL-0040	The maximum speed of the rover shall not exceed 0.5 m/s	Real Mars rovers move even slower. Speed of 0.5 m/s provides additional safety margin in case the rover is out of control
REQ-GNRL-0050	The rover shall keep its connection with a ground control facility at up 100m distance	General terrain conditions that can occur during the Challenge
REQ-GNRL-0060	The Team shall be ready to deploy an antenna mast in a distance of 20m out of the ground control facility	Ground control facilities are unknown til the Challenge is started
REQ-GNRL-0070	The rover shall withstand temperatures between 15 and 30 degrees Celcius	Usual temperatures in September in Poland
REQ-GNRL-0080	The rover shall withstand wind gusts, light drizzle and high sunlight levels	The Challenge site may be outdoor
REQ-GNRL-0090	The rover shall be able to traverse sandy, non-cohesive soil, hard and dry terrain as well as cobbled roads or other industrial surface types.	It expected the rover shall operate in off-road conditions as well as in industrial ones.
REQ-GNRL-0100	The rover shall transmit video signal to the ground control for tele-operation purposes	Video feedback is essential to perform reliable, robust, human-driven, in-field scenarios

[ARMM] Robotic arm maneuverability requirements

Robotic arm maneuverability requirements

ID

Requirement

Description

Mission-related requirements:

[SCIE] Scientific mission requirements

Scientific mission requirements

ID	Requirement	Description
REQ-SCIE-0010	The rover shall retrieve several types of geological samples	This is to complete an extensive geological trial
REQ-SCIE-0011	The rover shall retrieve 3 surface samples	The sample can be either a hard rock or loose soil
REQ-SCIE-0012	The rover shall excavate a trench	The trench may reveal some interesting geological structure
REQ-SCIE-0013	The trench shall have minimum 30cm length, 5cm depth and a steep wall that clearly presents soil layers	The trench may reveal some interesting geological structure
REQ-SCIE-0020	The rover shall be equiped with a set of containers	In order to store a speciment it is required to provide reliable, sealed containers
REQ-SCIE-0021	A container shall be sealed	The sealed container is a must to prevent a speciment from contaminating
REQ-SCIE-0022	The container shall provide capacity for at least 25g of a specimen. Preferably, 150g of speciment should be a goal	The greater amount of the speciment, more scientific trials can be performedo
REQ-SCIE-0023	The container shall provide quality container sealing	Each container must provide sufficient quality of sealing to prevent contamination
REQ-SCIE-0024	The rover shall be equipped with at least one specimen container	Otherwise, the rover will not be able to complete a task
REQ-SCIE-0025	The design of a container should be designed to keep real mission requirements in mind	The design shall correspond real mission requirements so the construction possibly can be reused in a Mars mission
REQ-SCIE-0026	The rover shall be equipped with at least 4 specimen containers	This is required to complete the task (3 superficial samples)) + 1 extra slot as a backup
REQ-SCIE-0030	The rover shall retrieve a deep soil sample	The deep soil sample is a must to fully verify geological traits of Mars
REQ-SCIE-0031	The rover shall retrieve the sample from 35cm below the surface	The deep soil sample is a must to fully verify geological traits of Mars
REQ-SCIE-0032	The rover shall be prepared to retrieve a deep soil sample from the soil of various consistency	The soil may very from loose soil to hard gypsum. Hard nuggets can be expected.
REQ-SCIE-0033	The speciment should be undisturbed, umixed, presenting clearly layered structure.	This is to provide maximum information e.g. layer stucture in terms of geological requirements
REQ-SCIE-0034	The deep soil sample should be retrieved without exposure to the external conditions such as atmosphere	This prevents the sample to release its, presumably, gases
REQ-SCIE-0040	The rover shall collect scientific-relevant data	This is the purpose of the mission…
REQ-SCIE-0041	The rover shall collect photographic documentation of each sample	Photographic documentation is a key to an in-depth scientific analysis
REQ-SCIE-0042	The rover shall collect photographic documentation of a sampling area	Collecting photographic documentation of a vicinity where a sample is collected is as much important as collecting the sample itself
REQ-SCIE-0043	The rover shall collect images in resolution minimum 800x600 pixels.	The specimen should occupy a major part of image
REQ-SCIE-0044	The rover should perform in-situ sample analysis	The more in-situ measurements is performed, the better. Weight, volume others parameters
REQ-SCIE-0044	The rover should provide several measureable parameters of the sampling area	Weather may influence on conditions in which the sample is collected. Any measurement that may help determine wheather conditions is of a great help for scientists.
REQ-SCIE-0045	The rover shall preserve all logs and documentation	Unstructured and preferably structured data is a must to perform scientific trials
REQ-SCIE-0045	Ground control software may be customized to efficiently prepare a mission raport based on the collected data	This is to present a clear raport to jury.
REQ-SCIE-0046	The rover should prevent shocks, vibrations caused by sample retriving activities to convey to the rover trunk	Separation of torque/forces acting on the rover trunk make the rover trunk makes it more reliable so more scientific trials can be performed

[MNTC] Maintenance mission requirements

Maintenance mission requirements

ID	Requirement	Description
REQ-MNTC-0010	The rover shall be able to perform maintenance tasks	Definition of the mission
REQ-MNTC-0011	The rover shall be able to a state of a switch	Switches are industrial grades
REQ-MNTC-0011	The rover shall be able to rotate a knob	Knobs set values presented/displayed in a display nearby (no further than 15cm from the knob)
REQ-MNTC-0012	The rover shall be plug a high power plug IEC 60309	One of the possible task to be performed on Mars
REQ-MNTC-0013	The rover shall be able to probe voltage	Voltage is expected to be in range of 1.0VDC to 24.0VDC
REQ-MNTC-0014	Voltage measurement accuracy shall be no greater than 0.5V DC	Measurement should not exceed 5% of tolerance
REQ-MNTC-0020	The rover shall be able to access switches/buttons/knobs that are installed in any position	Final position of an item is unknown
REQ-MNTC-0021	The rovel shall be able to operate on control items located in range [.2; 1.5]m above the ground level	General requirement
REQ-MNTC-0030	The rover shall be able to detach protection lids/covers.	Some of the items that control maintenance panel can be covered
REQ-MNTC-0030	The rover shall automate some of the tasks	The rover is a tool to be used by an astronaut. It should allow performing tasks with the least required astronaut’s attention. Thus, automatization is expected.
REQ-MNTC-0031	The rover should automatically retract the arm to the ‘ready’ position	This is relieve an astronaut of simple, tiring tasks
REQ-MNTC-0032	The rover should automatically retract the arm to the ‘transport’ position	This is relieve an astronaut of simple, tiring tasks
REQ-MNTC-0040	The rover shall provide augmented reality features	.
REQ-MNTC-0041	The rover shall recognize elements found in the maintenance panel	It is a part of the augmented reality
REQ-MNTC-0042	The rover shall suggest actions based on the detected features (buttons/switches/knobs…)	It is a part of the augmented reality
REQ-MNTC-0043	The rover should automaticaly perform switching action	The rover is expected to change a state of a switch
REQ-MNTC-0044	The rover should automatically press a button	As stated
REQ-MNTC-0045	The rover should provide spacial awareness information	The rover should send distance data to the nearest obstacle on the movement path of the robotic arm
REQ-MNTC-0045	The rover should track elements visible in the panel	This is to keep attention to the most important items in FOV
REQ-MNTC-0050	The rover shall provide feedback information such as forces exerted on the robotic arm	This is to assure the rover does not destroy any equipment
REQ-MNTC-0060	The rover shall use an adequate set of tools to perform each of the task	This is to assure the rover does not destroy any equipment and to perform the action robustly
REQ-MNTC-0070	The HMI shall be ergonomic, user-friendly	User experience is a part that facilitates any operation action. Well designed HMI reduced operator’s training time

[COLL] Collection mission requirements

The mission assumes the rover serves as a Simple Fetching Rover (SFR). The rover is meant to collect an object, e.g. a box with a speciment, and automatically deliver the cargo to the ground control. Since time on Mars is precious, special emphasis is put on task automation.

Maintenance mission requirements

ID	Requirement	Description
REQ-COLL-0010	A rover shall be equipped with a manipulator or other manipulator devices capable of catching, holding, stashing an cache object	For more details of the robotic arm requirements please refer to [ARMM] Robotic arm maneuverability requirements
REQ-COLL-0011	The rover shall be retrieve the object that can be partially covered with soild or buried	This is to simulate Mars weather that may cover any object in dust/soil
REQ-COLL-0020	The rover shall be capable of reaching a destination where the object is located	For more details of the robotic platform please refer to [GNRL] General rover requirements
REQ-COLL-0030	The rover shall be equipped with a container capable of storing a predefined cache object	The purpose of the container is prevent the cache object from damage
REQ-COLL-0031	The rover shall be equipped with at least 4 cache containers	This is required to complete the task (3 object to be cached) + 1 extra slot as a backup
REQ-COLL-0032	The container should keep a cache object vertically	General rule
REQ-COLL-0033	The container shall immobilize a cache object	This is to keep the object safe
REQ-COLL-0034	The container shall be able to store a cylinder as described in the [ERC-2018]	General rule
REQ-COLL-0035	The design of the container should be focused on facilitation if the object insertion	This is to reduce a risk of loosing and/or destroying the object when placing in the container
REQ-COLL-0040	The rover should provide some task automation	This is to provide robust performance of the rover
REQ-COLL-0041	The rover should automatically detect the cache object	This is a part of rover’s augmented reality to relieve an astronaut in tele-operation
REQ-COLL-0042	The rover should automatically approach the cache object	This is to automate simple tasks and relieve an astronaut/operator in tele-operation
REQ-COLL-0043	The rover should automatically pick up the cache object	This is to automate simple tasks and relieve an astronaut/operator in tele-operation

Integration, verification and other requirements