“We
dig Moon Dirt for Fun™” exclaims ACME Robotics
Released
on: December 10, 2007, 3:39 am
Press
Release Author: Don C. Dhabolt/ACME Robotics division
IT RealityString LLC
Industry:
Aerospace
Press
Release Summary: ACME Robotics, a small midwestern robotics company,
officially announces their intent to enter the Summer 2008 Regolith
Excavation Challenge, one of the NASA Centennial challenges, using
COTS technology.
Press
Release Body: Eldora, Iowa – December 10, 2007 – We
dig Moon Dirt for Fun™ is the slogan and $500,000
is the prize as ACME Robotics officially announces
their intent to enter the 2008 Regolith Excavation Challenge,
one of NASA’s Centennial challenges with
a total purse of $750,000 up for grabs.
“Efficiency of motion and redundancy are the keys to success”
states Don C. Dhabolt, Team Leader for ACME
Robotics. “Every piece of equipment on the ACME
Excavator utilizes COTS (commercial off the shelf) technology,
making it extremely cost effective to build.”
The biggest obstacle to overcome will be the dust, Don believes.
During the Apollo program, even the seals on sample
containers used to bring regolith back from the moon were compromised
by the dust; it’s so fine, it simply goes everywhere. Imagine
what it will do to the moving parts of a robotic excavator. A simulated
lunar regolith will be used for the 2008 challenge.
The first event was held in May of 2007 and competition was fierce
between the four participating teams. However, Mr. Dhabolt
wasn’t there, “I entered the competition. My prototype
was nearly complete, but I had to drop out early.” Lack
of funding and sponsorship were the main reasons for the early withdrawal,
he said. The event highlighted quite an array of designs, but each
machine was strictly a “stand and dig”
machine – all were autonomous but none had locomotion. ACME
Robotics read between the lines and designed a mobile,
autonomous excavator. “I guess we have a head start for
the 2008 competition,” Mr. Dhabolt said.
Don admits, the 2008 challenge will be extremely difficult –
the rules have changed. Building an autonomous excavator to move
150kg of simulated moon dirt within a 30 minute time limit will
not be easy, but Mr. Dhabolt is excited. When asked about the ACME
Excavator design, he smiles and says “Why re-invent
the wheel? I’ve simply utilized existing technologies and
combined them in a unique package. We’ll just have to wait
and see what happens next summer.” Indeed we will.
The California Space Education and Workforce Institute (CSEWI)
will administer the 2008 Regolith Excavation Challenge,
which is also Co-Hosted by the California Space Authority
(CSA). The event will be held sometime during the summer
of 2008, exact date to be determined.
Don C. Dhabolt is the Team Leader of ACME Robotics,
and the Director of Operations for IT RealityString LLC,
a small Information Technology Consulting firm located in Eldora,
Iowa and La Crosse, Wisconsin.
Web
Site: http://acme-robotics.org
Contact
Details: Don C. Dhabolt
ACME Robotics Division
IT RealityString LLC
P.O. Box 9
Eldora, Iowa
800.779.0053, voice
866.430.9235, fax
dcdhabolt@ACME-Robotics.org
http://ACME-Robotics.org
http://ITRealityString.com
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