Motion Perception Simulation for Lunar Rover Driving Using the Spatial Orientation Observer Model

Reduced gravity may impair motion perception accuracy, especially in the absence of visual cues, which could degrade astronauts’ driving performance. The lack of prior research makes simulating realistic motion perception for lunar rover driving particularly challenging. We created a simulation syst...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Wei Chen, Fang Du, Shao-Li Xie, Ming An, Hua Deng, Wan-Hong Lin, Jian-Gang Chao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-06-01
Series:Vehicles
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2624-8921/7/2/56
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Summary:Reduced gravity may impair motion perception accuracy, especially in the absence of visual cues, which could degrade astronauts’ driving performance. The lack of prior research makes simulating realistic motion perception for lunar rover driving particularly challenging. We created a simulation system to quantitatively simulate the motion characteristics of a lunar rover at different gravity levels, and a software program based on the spatial orientation observer model was developed for the comparison of motion perception differences between Earth’s and lunar gravity. In comparison to Earth’s gravity, the lunar rover in lunar gravity demonstrates the following differences: (1) The rover exhibits a greater propensity to float and slip, and slower acceleration and deceleration. (2) Dynamic tilt perception may be more complicated with single vestibular information, while static tilt perception is greatly reduced; the introduction of visual information can notably improve the perception accuracy. Simulation results demonstrate that motion characteristics and perception of lunar rover driving exhibit a more variable trend at different gravity levels. An intuitive mathematical formulation was proposed to explain the single vestibular results. Our findings provide a basis for further optimizing lunar rover driving motion simulation strategies.
ISSN:2624-8921