• ABORT SEQUENCE *
• APPLY PATCH SET s LENGTH n
• CALIBRATE HEADING WITH SUN AT h USING CAMERA c BY TIME t
• CALL FUNCTION AT ADDRESS a WITH BANKS b1, b2 [PARAMETERS p1 p2 ...] (RL)
• CAPTURE IMAGE WITH CAMERA c AT EXPOSURE t, RETURN REGION FROM (r1,c1) TO(r2,c2) WITH APID a [compressed]
• CLEAR c *(RL)
• DRIVE MOTORS (RL only)
• DEPLOY APXS p
• END OF SEQUENCE *(RL)
• FIND ROCK NEAR x y WITHIN m MINUTES
• GO TO WAYPOINT AT x y WITHIN m MINUTES
• HEALTH CHECK AT LEVEL n (RL)
• HEAT FOR n MINUTES IN SEQUENCE s [s ...]
• LIMIT-CALIBRATE POSITION SENSORS
• MATERIAL ADHERENCE (RL)
• MOVE BACKWARD n COUNTS
• MOVE FORWARD n COUNTS
• OUTPUT x TO PORT p (RL)
• PATCH MEMORY SET s CRC c SEGMENT b ADDRESS a TO x x x ... (RL)
• POSITION APXS
• READ ANALOG CHANNEL c AT GAIN g [ c AT g ... ] (RL)
• READ BYTES FROM PORT p p p ... (RL)
• READ n BYTES FROM SEGMENT s ADDRESS a (RL)
• RUN MOTOR m FOR t CENTONS
• RUN MOTOR m TO p (RL)
• SEND APXS COMMAND c (RL)
• SET CLOCK TO t (RL)
• SET DEVICE d STATUS s
• SET ERROR MASK TO m *(RL)
• SET MISSION PHASE p
• SET PARAMETER p = value (RL)
• SET VEHICLE POSITION TO x y, HEADING TO h
• SHUTDOWN UNTIL t *(RL)
• SOIL MECHANICS TEST ON WHEEL w AT POSITION p, RUN FOR n COUNTS, REPEAT k TIMES
• SYNCHRONIZE CLOCK (RL)
• TEST n BYTES OF MEMORY IN SEGMENT s AT ADDRESS a (RL)
• TURN LEFT n BAMS
• TURN OFF DEVICES d
• TURN ON DEVICES d
• TURN RIGHT n BAMS
• TURN TO HEADING h
• TURN TOWARD x, y
• UNSTOW p d c l r
• WAIT FOR s SECONDS (RL)
• WAIT UNTIL LOCAL TIME t (RL)
• WAIT UNTIL MISSION TIME t (RL)
• WAIT UNTIL s < v, LIMIT m
• WAIT UNTIL s > v, LIMIT m
• WHEEL ABRASION MEASUREMENT AT GAIN g
• ZERO-CALIBRATE POSITION SENSORS

• Return to Contents page

ABORT SEQUENCE*

Specific errors:
	invalid command (not first command of sequence)

APPLY PATCH SET s LENGTH n

If the patch set number or total length do not match the pending patch data, the pending patches are discarded.

Specific errors:
	invalid command (length or patch set number mismatch)
	general failure (uncorrected data error or EEPROM write error)

CALIBRATE HEADING WITH SUN AT h USING CAMERA c BY TIME t

	(specified sun heading - measured sun heading).

Specific errors:
	general failure (unable to find sun position or too late)

CALL FUNCTION AT ADDRESS a WITH BANKS b1, b2 [PARAMETERS p1 p2 ...] (RL)

CAPTURE IMAGE WITH CAMERA c AT EXPOSURE t, RETURN REGION FROM (r1,c1) TO(r2,c2) WITH APID a [compressed]

Proper auto-exposure for the color camera requires changing the shift factor in converting the 12-bit A/D samples to 8-bit image data. The front black and white cameras should generally be 0 (= shift 2); the rear color camera should be 3 (= shift 1).

Valid image data is in rows 6 through 489 and columns 0 through 767; row 490 contains dark reference pixels. The ending region coordinates (r2 and c2) are one more than the last row/column sent (e.g. if r1=10 and r2=15, the five rows 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 are sent). If compression is requested, the specified region should be an even multiple of four rows and 16 columns (it is automatically expanded if necessary, but compression results may suffer). The returned telemetry data is tagged with the specified APID.

If any lasers have been enabled with TURN ON DEVICE, they are turned on during the exposure. Exposure time may be overridden to limit laser "on" duration.

CLEAR c *(RL)

DEPLOY APXS p

The RUN MOTOR command, together with an appropriate specification of the {CONTACT_MASK} parameter, can be used instead to deploy or retract the APXS to a specific position without monitoring the contact sensors. Under most circumstances, the RUN MOTOR command should be used instead of DEPLOY APXS for APXS retraction: before retraction, the contact sensors will generally already be indicating contact, which would result in a DEPLOY APXS command completing nominally without having retracted the mechanism. Additionally, ADM contact sensors must be enabled for the DEPLOY APXS command to execute.

DRIVE MOTORS m0 m1 m2 m3 m4 m5 FOR t CENTONS (RL ONLY)

This command is only available in Rover Lite.

END OF SEQUENCE *(RL)

An empty command sequence, containing only an "End of sequence" command, can be used to keep the rover safely idle (without it timing out communications and entering a contingency mode).

FIND ROCK NEAR x y WITHIN m MINUTES

GO TO WAYPOINT AT x y WITHIN m MINUTES

HEALTH CHECK AT LEVEL n (RL)

Level 0 is a basic check/report; normally all switchable devices are off. Telemetry volume is small. Reads the current state of analog sensors, checks for any sensed data outside operational limits, update device failure counts. Checks core RAM.

Level 1 also checks sensor limit data recorded during traverse operations (min/max since the last level 1-or-above check). Same telemetry as level 0. This is the default periodic and wakeup check.

Level 2 is the same checking as level 1, but reports additional data. A good choice after a traverse.

Level 3 actively tests non-actuator devices; sensor limit data recorded during traverse is used for actuators. Bulk RAM (read/write) and EEPROM (read) are also tested. This would be used to get a detailed picture of the rover's health.

Level 4 also tests reusable actuators for open/short-circuit condition by turning them on for a brief interval and monitoring current use. Levels 4 and 5 are more complete "physical exams".

Level 5 actively tests all reusable devices. Actuators are tested by monitoring associated sensors (which implies running them longer than for level 4):

		wheel motors -> encoders
		steering/APXS motors -> pots
		lasers -> CCDs
		heaters -> temperature sensors

HEAT FOR n MINUTES IN SEQUENCE s [s ...]

LIMIT-CALIBRATE POSITION SENSORS

MATERIAL ADHERENCE (RL)

MOVE FORWARD n COUNTS WITH STEERING l r
MOVE BACKWARD n COUNTS WITH STEERING l r

OUTPUT x TO PORT p (RL)

PATCH MEMORY SET s CRC c SEGMENT b ADDRESS a TO x [x ...] (RL)

Patches can be applied to:

• fixed memory
• EEPROM
• rad-hard bulk RAM
• bulk RAM

Specific errors:
	invalid command (CRC does not match old memory contents)

POSITION APXS

READ ANALOG CHANNEL c AT GAIN g [ c AT g ... ] (RL)

READ BYTES FROM PORT p [p ...] (RL)

READ n BYTES FROM SEGMENT s ADDRESS a (RL)

RUN MOTOR m FOR t CENTONS

RUN MOTOR m TO p (RL)

Pot sensor positions are relative to the calibration offset software parameters.

SEND APXS COMMAND c (RL)

A specific TURN OFF DEVICE rover command is required to turn off the APXS.

The following command codes are accepted:

	CYCLE_START
	OPEN_SHUTTER
	CLOSE_SHUTTER
	MEAS_START
	MEAS_STOP
	TX_START
	RESET

When Rover Lite is active, a simplified version of this command is used. MEAS_STOP and TX_START are no longer available. MEAS_START causes the following sequence of events: begin data collection; integrate for a specified number of seconds, halt data collection, send data to rover, shutdown APXS. The {APXS_NIGHT} parameter is instead interpreted as the {APXS_TIME_RL} parameter; {APXS_TIME_RL} is the number of seconds of integration time to be used.

Specific errors:
	general failure (unable to communicate with APXS)

SET CLOCK TO t (RL)

SET DEVICE d STATUS s

SET ERROR MASK TO m *(RL)

SET MISSION PHASE p

				pre-launch
				cruise
				pre-release
				pre-deployment
				surface operations
				extended mission	
				(If MS bit set, force to this phase
				until either shutdown or next
				Set Mission Phase command)

Specific errors:
	general failure (request rejected due to other sensor information)

SET PARAMETER p = value (RL)

Steering rate - calibration factor indicating nominal change in steering/APXS deployment pot reading, in 1/256 A/D counts per centon. Used for fallback time-based control.

APXS position limit for driving - A/D reading of APXS deployment mechanism position sensor beyond which the rover disallows drive commands (to avoid dragging APXS).

APXS night mode - indicates whether to connect the APXS directly to the battery bus, if the APXS is active, when shutting down the CPU (for nighttime data collection). Note: When Rover Lite is active, DO NOT use this parameter. Use {APXS_TIME_RL} instead.

APXS integration time (Rover Lite ONLY) - indicates how long, in Earth seconds, to collect data using the APXS in Rover Lite mode. This parameter is actually the same as the {APXS_NIGHT} parameter, but is interpreted as {APXS_TIME_RL} by the simplified SEND APXS COMMAND command when Rover Lite is active.

Automatic imaging after failed traverse -

		none
		left camera (default)
		right camera
		rear camera
		(camera bits may be combined; e.g. all cameras)

Turning rate (counts) - calibration factor indicating nominal turn-in-place rate, in 1/32 encoder counts per centon. Used for fallback encoder-based control.

Battery usage override - determines the functions for which the rover is allowed to use battery power (by bypassing the current limiter and/or allowing commands when insufficient solar power is available, unless all battery strings have failed). The value is the logical "or" of the following masks:

			motors
			WEB heaters
			motor heaters
			modem heater
			other devices
			12V I/O power

Bogey/differential sensor offsets, - A/D readings for bogey and differential pots at nominal positions.

Command acknowledge - if set, commands that otherwise wouldn't generate any telemetry data after normal completion generate a "command acknowledge" packet.

APID for command execution report - the APID value inserted into telemetry data for command execution report messages.

Command query interval - the rover asks the lander for new commands at this rate (in seconds) when there are no commands ready, and during wait commands.

Command timeout limit - if the rover doesn't receive a valid command sequence for this many minutes, it begins contingency operation.

Session retry limit - number of times to attempt lander communication sessions. (low-level frame retry limit is fixed).

Contact sensor enable mask - bitmask indicating which contact sensors are enabled (if bit set):

		solar panel right front
		solar panel left front
		solar panel left rear
		solar panel right rear
		bumper right front
		bumper left front
		APXS 1
		APXS 2
		APXS 3

Wheel rate - calibration factor indicating nominal wheel rate, in 1/1024 encoder counts per centon. Used for fallback time-based control.

Default wakeup time-of-day - local time-of-day, in minutes after midnight, at which the rover sets its wakeup alarm before an automatic shutdown (a commanded shutdown includes an explicit wakeup time). 7:30 am.

MAE Dust cover open time - duration to keep dust cover open during material adherence experiment, in msec.

"End of day" time-of-day - local time-of-day, in Earth minutes after midnight, after which the rover will automatically shutdown when solar power drops. default = 6 pm.

Error reporting severity threshold - error reports at or above this threshold are logged and sent in a critical state telemetry packet. minor,major,critical.

CCD Defect correction - if set, rover applies defect correction information stored in EEPROM when reading CCD images. disable,enable.

Hazard avoidance enable - set of flags indicating which navigation hazards the rover is allowed to autonomously avoid during Go To Waypoint and Find Rock command traversal. If a hazard condition is detected for which avoidance is not enabled, the traverse command is aborted. The value is the logical "or" of the following masks:

		sensor reading outside safety limits
		contact sensor triggered
		lost heartbeat communication with lander
		laser/CCD proximity hazard detection
		too close to (and heading toward) lander
		motor stalled

Distance between heartbeats - minimum distance, in millimeters of forward travel, between lander communication heartbeats in waypoint and find rock driving modes (the actual heartbeat is performed at next traverse cycle stop).

Automatic health check level - the level of health check to be performed at wakeup/periodic checks(see health check command).

Automatic health check interval - time interval (in Earth seconds) between automatic health checks performed in between commands and during WAITs.

Hold Communication - if enabled, telemetry output is buffered (according to {TBUF_MODE}) and command abort checks are not performed. This limits use of the modem to command requests, clock syncs, and heartbeats, and can be used:

• to avoid power-cycling the APXS during APXS experiments (since APXS and modem share a power source)
• to avoid wasted communication attempts (power and time) when the lander is known to be non-communicative (e.g. at night)
• to speed up sequencing of groups of commands

Laser image exposure time - milliseconds for capturing laser stripe images during proximity sensing.

Local midnight reference time - CCSDS time (in seconds) of a recent local midnight, used to convert mission time to local time-of-day.

Minimum core bus voltage - a core bus voltage reading below this level indicates a failure of the current limiter and/or batteries, and prevents turning on the WEB heater.

Encoder scale factor - used to convert wheel odometer counts into distance traveled. (1/256 of mm per encoder count)

Modem heating time - at wakeup, the modem is heated for this many seconds.

Modem reheating time - maximum time in seconds to heat the modem after a communication failure, if the modem temperature is below {MODEM_TEMP}.

Modem reheating temperature - the rover stops heating the modem after a communication failure when the modem temperature sensor reaches this value (sensor reading = (deg C + 17) * 21). default = value corresponding to -10C

Motor cooldown time - if the motors are shut off for overheating, the rover sits idle for this many seconds allowing them to cool.

Motor average current limit - the rover shuts down motors to prevent overheating if the energy monitoring for any one motor exceeds this average value of A/D motor current counts when averaged over 32 seconds.

Power-saving mode - a mask of bits enabling power-saving operation of selected devices (turning device on only when necessary, default = all off to reduce power cycling stress).

	linear accelerometers (if set, only turn on when
		stopped during traverse)
	Other bits TBD

	disable
	enable (default)

Risk level - determines thresholds for what is considered a hazard. Selects safety limits for sensors (pitch, roll, Z-tilt, differential, bogeys, temperature, voltage, current), proximity hazard thresholds. min risk (default), medium risk, max risk

"End of day" solar power threshold - when solar power available is below this level, and local time-of-day is past end-of-day time, the rover automatically shuts down for the night (range TBD). disable auto shutdown

Maximum squeeze mode navigation - maximum distance (in mm) rover can drive through a narrow region where it is unable to turn in place. If it goes this far without reaching a clear area, it backs out of the narrow region and looks for a different path.

Motor stall current - if a motor current exceeds this limit (in 0.185mA units) for 16 consecutive update samples (4 samples for steering and ADM motors), a motor stall hazard is declared. The ADM motor stall limit is set 18.5mA higher to account for the additional resistance.

Steering sensor offsets - A/D readings for each steering pot when centered, and APXS deployment mechanism position sensor at the fully stowed position.

Telemetry buffering mode - controls rover action when unable to send telemetry data to lander. disable, buffer in RAM (highest capacity), buffer in EEPROM (default, preserved across power-down).

Traversal telemetry (detail level) - number of captured samples of sensor data for telemetry (in all driving modes) per output sample. Data is collected at nominally 2-second intervals, and stored in a circular buffer. All data is sent in the event of a failure.

Thermal management update rate - the rover updates power/thermal management at this interval (in seconds) when idle or waiting.

Traverse cycle distance - millimeters of forward travel between stops, in waypoint and find rock driving modes (not direct move, turn in place, APXS positioning, or unstow). While stopped, the rover performs:

• laser proximity check (if enabled)
• steering adjustment
• linear accelerometer (pitch/roll) reading (if power-save mode)
• telemetry transmit (if telemetry packet is full)
• heartbeat (if traveled far enough since last one)
• turn rate sensor recalibration (if at least 100 secs [TBD] since last calibration)
• EEPROM update of vehicle state (if at least 100 secs [TBD] since last update)
• recalibration of motor positions if pots failed (if at least 100 secs [TBD])

Turn sensor scale factor - calibration factor in 1/2048 BAMs per A/D count of the turn rate integrator sensor reading.

WEB set A limit - the rover stops heating the WEB when any sensor in set A is above this limit (or any sensor in set B is above B's limit, sensor reading = (deg C + 17) * 21). default = value corresponding to 40°C).

WEB set B limit - the rover stops heating the WEB when any sensor in set B is above this limit (or any sensor in set A is above A's limit, sensor reading = (deg C + 17) * 21). default = value corresponding to 50°C).

WEB overtemp - the rover refuses to turn on equipment other than the modem (i.e. start commands) if any temperature sensor in set A is above this value. (sensor reading = (deg C + 17) * 21); default = value corresponding to 55°C).

WEB temperature sensor set A - a 16-bit map of the temperature sensors making up the first monitoring set (default = 0xF00 (CPU/electronics board, power board, WEB wall, and modem)).

			left front wheel
			right front wheel
			WEB
			modem
			left front CCD
			right front CCD
			rear CCD
			battery A
			battery B
			battery C
			CPU board
			power board
			MAE

WEB temperature sensor set B - a 16-bit map of the temperature sensors making up the second monitoring set (default = 0x0E0 (battery tray sensors)). Bit assignment is same as for {WEB_SET_A}.

SET VEHICLE POSITION TO x y, HEADING TO h

SHUTDOWN UNTIL t *(RL)

If the wakeup time is zero, the rover performs a system reset, but stays awake. Otherwise, if the wakeup time is at or earlier than the current time, the command is ignored.

The rover also shuts down automatically when the local time-of-day is later than a threshold and the solar power falls below {SHUTDOWN_POWER}, setting the wakeup time to {DEFAULT_WAKEUP}. These parameters can be changed to alter the automatic shutdown behavior (including disabling it to allow night operation). Generates a Sequence Status Report, or Command Acknowledge if ignored.

SOIL MECHANICS TEST ON WHEEL w AT POSITION p, RUN FOR n COUNTS, REPEAT k TIMES

SYNCHRONIZE CLOCK (RL)

Specific errors:
	general failure (unable to communicate with lander)

TEST n BYTES OF MEMORY IN SEGMENT s AT ADDRESS a (RL)

The specified physical memory segment is mapped into bank 2, which appears at logical addresses C000 to FFFF hex; the start address should be set accordingly. The maximum number of bytes which can be tested during a single command is 16,384.

Specific errors:
	general failure (memory errors found)

TURN LEFT n BAMS
TURN RIGHT n BAMS

[BAM = binary angular measurement; 2^16 BAMs = 1 revolution]

TURN ON DEVICES d
TURN OFF DEVICES d

			WEB heater
			left wheel motor heaters (see note 1)
			right wheel motor heaters (see note 1)
			steering motor heaters (see note 1)
			APXS motor heater (see note 1)
			modem heater
			modem
			APXS (see note 2)

			far left laser (see note 3)
			near left laser (see note 3)
			center laser (see note 3)
			near right laser (see note 3)
			far right laser (see note 3)
			current limiter bypass (see note 7)
			MAE QCM
			MAE dust cover (see note 4)

			LEDs (APXS contact/wheel encoders)
			turn rate sensor
			linear accelerometers
			CCDs
			3BSS batteries (see notes 5, 6)
			APXS failsafe (see note 5)

Note 2: Use {APXS_NIGHT} parameter to keep APXS on after shutdown

Note 3: "Left laser" means the laser mounted on the vehicle's left (whose beam extends to the right). Turning off any laser turns off ALL lasers. Actually, this just enables lasers to be turned on during CCD imaging.

Note 4: "On" opens dust cover, "off" closes it. Dust cover should not be kept open more than 20 seconds at a time.

Note 5: These requests are rejected if the mission phase is pre-launch or cruise. As a safety feature, they are also rejected unless the corresponding device bit is the only one set in the command.

Note 6: Ignored in a "TURN OFF DEVICES" command.

Note 7: Not really useful - the bypass is turned off after each command

TURN TO HEADING h

TURN TOWARD x,y

X position (mm N of lander)
Y position (mm E of lander)

UNSTOW p d c l r

max logical bogey pot position indicating standup
min logical differential position indicating standup
min wheel motor current increase indicating successful bogey latching
min left wheel encoder counts indicating standup
min right wheel encoder counts indicating standup

"Logical" position = physical pot reading - reference parameter.

For testing or recovery from a failed unstow, negative encoder counts values indicate relative counts from the starting odometer value.

The first part of standup proceeds until a hazard condition is detected or both sides indicate standup (bogey pot <= (p) or odometer >= (l/r)). If standup is successful, bogey latching is tested by backing off the rear wheels until motor currents increase by (c) or bogeys increase by 40 within 4 seconds. Finally, failure is also declared if the final differential value is less than (d).

If bogey pots have failed, (p) is ignored and the latch test is not performed. If the differential has failed, (d) is ignored.

WAIT FOR s SECONDS (RL)
WAIT UNTIL MISSION TIME t (RL)
WAIT UNTIL LOCAL TIME t (RL)
WAIT UNTIL s < v, LIMIT m
WAIT UNTIL s > v, LIMIT m

The wait condition can be:

• relative duration from the current time
• absolute mission (CCSDS) time
• local time-of-day
• smoothed reading of physical or virtual sensor (temperature, solar power, etc.) is less than (greater than) a specified limit, with relative time limit

WHEEL ABRASION MEASUREMENT AT GAIN g

ZERO-CALIBRATE POSITION SENSORS

• Return to Index

All information on this site, including text and images describing the Rover, is copyright © 1996, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.