Title: Energy-Constrained Navigation for Planetary Rovers under Hybrid RTG-Solar Power Show Chinese title

Title: 行星探测车在混合RTG-太阳能供电下的能量约束导航

Abstract: Future planetary exploration rovers must operate for extended durations on hybrid power inputs that combine steady radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) output with variable solar photovoltaic (PV) availability. While energy-aware planning has been studied for aerial and underwater robots under battery limits, few works for ground rovers explicitly model power flow or enforce instantaneous power constraints. Classical terrain-aware planners emphasize slope or traversability, and trajectory optimization methods typically focus on geometric smoothness and dynamic feasibility, neglecting energy feasibility. We present an energy-constrained trajectory planning framework that explicitly integrates physics-based models of translational, rotational, and resistive power with baseline subsystem loads, under hybrid RTG-solar input. By incorporating both cumulative energy budgets and instantaneous power constraints into SE(2)-based polynomial trajectory optimization, the method ensures trajectories that are simultaneously smooth, dynamically feasible, and power-compliant. Simulation results on lunar-like terrain show that our planner generates trajectories with peak power within 0.55 percent of the prescribed limit, while existing methods exceed limits by over 17 percent. This demonstrates a principled and practical approach to energy-aware autonomy for long-duration planetary missions. Show Chinese abstract

Abstract: 未来行星探测车必须在混合电源输入下长时间运行，该电源结合了稳定的放射性同位素热电发电机(RTG)输出与可变的太阳能光伏(PV)可用性。 虽然在电池限制下对空中和水下机器人进行了能量感知规划的研究，但针对地面探测车的研究很少明确建模功率流或强制瞬时功率约束。 经典地形感知规划器强调坡度或可行驶性，轨迹优化方法通常专注于几何平滑性和动态可行性，而忽略了能量可行性。 我们提出了一种能量约束的轨迹规划框架，在混合RTG-太阳能输入下，显式地整合了平移、旋转和阻力功率的物理模型以及基础子系统负载。 通过将累积能量预算和瞬时功率约束纳入基于SE(2)的多项式轨迹优化，该方法确保轨迹同时具有平滑性、动态可行性和功率合规性。 在类似月球地形的仿真结果表明，我们的规划器生成的轨迹峰值功率在规定限制的0.55%以内，而现有方法超过限制超过17%。 这证明了一种有原则且实用的方法，用于长期行星任务的能量感知自主性。