Impact case study database

IRG has “played a key role in the development, calibration, and testing of PanCam and ISEM” [5.1], impacting on commerce and the economy, contributing to innovation and entrepreneurial activity in the UK and European Space Industry through the design and delivery of the Mars Terrain Simulator (MTS) and AU PanCam Emulator (AUPE). This work has also led to impacts on practitioners and delivery of professional services: AUPE allows industrial (as well as academic) collaborators across Europe to develop new processes and methods to analyse the data from PanCam, with IRG providing consultancy for a number of projects, while MTS is used by industrial European and Russian research collaborators involved in the ESA ExoMars mission to improve their techniques and processes [5.1][5.2]. IRG’s “quick and efficient work […] has enabled industrial contractors to maintain their tight schedule” and due to the results produced, ESA “have great confidence in the flight instruments’ ability to fulfil their mission objectives” [5.1].

“[T]he involvement of AU staff in preparing ExoMars has and continues to be fundamental for improving mission design, processes, streamlining operations, and getting us closer, in the not too distant future, to hopefully being able to find traces of life on Mars” [5.1].

Leading experts at Joanneum Research (JR) conclude that IRG “continues to be one of the most important international R&D partners of the JR Space Robotics and Instruments team” [5.2].

IRG was awarded the contract to produce the sensor systems for the Mars Terrain Simulator MTS, based at ALTEC in Italy 0[5.3]. Pre-launch, MTS facilitates the testing of aspects of missions, and post-launch, MTS is set to be used to practice and troubleshoot operations during the mission, “provid[ing] a key capability for ground testing during the surface mission” [5.1]. “[W]orking with the [IRG], has allowed [5.4] to develop a facility that is essential to technical aspects of the ExoMars mission, but also allows public engagement activities centred around the mission” [5.4]. Another internationally renowned contribution is based on IRG’s powerful ‘Shape from Shading’ computer software to provide detailed 3D images of the area on Mars (from images taken by the HiRISE camera on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter) where the Beagle 2 Mars Lander (which was lost on Christmas Day 2003) were believed to have landed. This has successfully led to the discovery of the remains of Beagle 2 in the proximity of that area in 2015, as reported by BBC [5.9].

“AUPE has underpinned over a decade of field trials in preparation for Rosalind Franklin’s mission [and] has allowed developing analysis tools and techniques, rehearsing operations, and training investigators. [AU’s] development of an instrument for field testing has proven critical for the design and success of the mission” [5.1].

“AUPE has been used for numerous laboratory and field trials over the last decade, which have provided test and reference data for [JR’s] processing pipelines and analysis tools, provided benchmark data for end-to-end validation of workflows and support for field test campaigns to rehearse mission operations and train operators, and enabled industry to calibrate rover instruments, validate the calibration assets, and verify the instruments’ performance” [5.2].

IRG has made a profound impact on the understanding, learning and participation of science and engineering through organising and regularly taking part in a variety of events to showcase current robotics research with the general public. This has allowed us to target different types of audiences in age, gender, and geographical location, with different levels of understanding and preconceptions about robotics. In the four years between 2016 and 2019, we have visited over 70 different schools and colleges across the UK engaging over 7,000 children of different ages, as well as speaking to nearly 30,000 members of the general public at various events [5.5] and contributing to a national outreach programme which has reached over 310,000 visitors to science museums across the UK [5.6].

In 2013 the Aberystwyth Robotics Club [5.7] was established for STEM engagement with local school children (initially as part of the Technocamps project delivery 0), teaching a wide range of skills for developing robotics systems and inspiring future generations of scientists and engineers. From the first intake of students, over 2/3rds have since gone on to pursue degrees in STEM subjects. The Club has won national awards for STEM engagement, including an award for the Best Use of a STEM Ambassador in the 2016 STEM Clubs Week involving approximately 3,000 schools across the UK, showcasing the creativity, problem-solving and employability skills that STEM activities offer. IRG’s initiatives in developing Robotics Club has provided a template for the establishment of clubs elsewhere. The most recent was created through funding for international development to form a robotics club with 20 local school children in Karbala, Iraq, engaging and addressing social and political divides 0.

The form of our robotics research-led public engagement activities range from traditional talks and Q&A sessions, to Film and Panel discussions during the annual Robotics weeks from 2018 to 2020; raising awareness of, and showcasing, state of the art of robotics research and applications via actively participating in events such as Jodrell Bank’s bluedot festival and the National Eisteddfod of Wales Science Village (attendance approximately 150,000 annually) and UKRI-organised science and engineering promotion activities [5.5]. IRG won the first prize in EPSRC Science People Photo Competition consecutively in 2015 and 2016, and the third prize in 2017 (Figure 1), cherishing outstanding achievements of UK engineering and physical sciences. This led to radio and TV appearances, including an ITV programme on “My Robot Helper” (April 2018). The long-term impact of these events is evident from the feedback attained

“I attended the film and Q+A for the robotics week last year which initially sparked my interest in robots and artificial intelligence. I returned this year with a greater understanding… Both events significantly increased my interest in robotics and have inspired me to pursue my own research on the topic.” [5.8]

Figure 1: ‘iCub and Eve’ taken by Sandy Spence, People and Skills, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) science photography competition 2017