A whole lot of corporations and analysis teams have participated within the growth of the Perseverance rover now on Mars, in addition to the Ingenuity Mars helicopter connected under. When the rover obtained off and landed on February 18, it began sending hundreds of pictures, many in high-resolution shade.

Jenoptik developed state-of-the-art lenses used on board the rover to create many of those pictures, not just for public consumption, however to assist the rover navigate, keep away from risks and accumulate samples of Martian soil for a attainable again to Earth. Fierce electronics spoke with Jenoptik North America President Jay Kumler concerning the steps to work with NASA / JPL.

FE: Jenoptik has labored with NASA and JPL on house tasks earlier than, coming again to Hubble I imagine, however are you able to share just a little bit about how the work on Perseverance began?

Kumler: The connection with the primary optical engineers at JPL dates again to 1993, after we first constructed a professional instrument for members of the EECAM (Enhanced Engineering Cameras) crew. The preliminary quote request for Perseverance got here from NASA / JPL in 2015. JPL solicited a number of corporations to design and construct the EECam by way of a aggressive bidding course of.

FE: What’s Jenoptik’s purpose and precedence for engaged on house tasks? For instance, is that this a great way in your firm to showcase your work, or is it extra of an opportunity to refine R&D work? And is it actually worthwhile or an funding?

Kumler: Over time we have constructed certified {hardware} for quite a few NASA packages, however we have been extra selective in recent times. It is a good way to problem our R&D crew, increase our in-house know-how, and an efficient method to display our world-class capabilities. We’ve actually made investments on our facet to make sure the success of the mission.

FE: Your enterprise is various in public security, sensible cities, many areas, however might the house phase grow to be extra vital sooner or later?

Kumler: We’re presently collaborating in some house packages and have indicated to JPL that we’ll present these identical lenses once more if they’re utilized in a future program. The house phase will stay a small however vital a part of our general world enterprise.

FE: Are you able to describe the way in which you’re employed with NASA with testing and collaboration? Does it require loads of manpower?

Kumler: We work in an open and collaborative method with the engineers at NASA. That is mandatory when designing a part of a digital camera system – clearly all elements should work collectively and the digital camera lenses should be delivered in a well timed method.

The design effort requires a crew of skilled Jenoptik engineers to develop the digital camera lens designs, tolerate the system, mannequin the system beneath broad working circumstances, and element all elements of the digital camera lens assemblies. The engineering effort to design and construct the check gear that can validate the lenses has additionally been appreciable. The tooling alone to align, glue and check the EECAM lens assemblies required 200 drawings.

FE: The cameras onboard Perseverance are working properly. What makes them particular? I’ve realized that Navcams can distinguish an object as small as a golf ball at a distance of 80 ft, for instance.

Kumler: The reference to the excellence of an 82-foot golf ball comes from NASA. This isn’t a technical specification – it is simply an illustration to provide the general public an thought of ​​how NavCam cameras work. The illustration solely applies to navigation cameras.

The technical specs of EECAM lens assemblies are fairly detailed. For the NavCam, there are 16 particular person parameters that have to be measured and reported, together with polychromatic MTF, transmission, relative illumination, and facet shade over all digital camera working circumstances.

A definitive technical reference describes the improved engineering cameras. This text additionally covers Entry Descent Touchdown (EDL) lenses and is a superb reference for any technical specs which might be made public.

FE: The video NASA shared of the EDL was shot with COTS gear, in keeping with NASA. It appears to have been added with a smaller finances and later within the course of. Are you able to touch upon the worth of costlier, industrial-grade digital camera mechanisms and lenses like these from Jenoptik? Would you’ve gotten appreciated to supply the cameras used through the EDL, for instance?

Kumler: Jenoptik didn’t bid on EDL cameras and was not concerned in growth. Maki’s paper states: “EDLCAMs have been developed with a minimal variety of key necessities. The primary requirement was that the EDLCAMs mustn’t intervene with the flight system through the essential EDL part of the mission. This requires the EDLCAM imaging system to have zero or virtually zero interplay with the weather of the legacy MSL flight system through the EDL.

“The EDL digital camera system was labeled as a know-how demonstration throughout growth, and the system makes use of a major quantity of commercially out there materials certified and modified for EDL use.”

We did not have COTS cameras that met the necessities for EDL cameras, which have been finally equipped by Level Grey, a enterprise unit of FLIR, so there was no adjustment.

The worth of customized targets is to maximise efficiency on essential elements of the rover. This permits engineers to realize precisely the sphere of view, decision and optical efficiency they need for optimum rover operation on the floor.

There is a superb abstract of the explanations for designing customized lenses for the NavCam and HazCam in part 2.1.2 of the doc.

FE: NASA is at all times searching for methods to chop costs. They even used a few of Curiosity’s aftermarket elements. Are there nonetheless pressures to chop prices?

Kumler: There may be normally a strain to regulate prices with out taking any shortcuts on reliability or efficiency. Worth was a part of the choice standards when NASA selected Jenoptik to develop the lenses for the cameras.

FE: Are you able to inform what a single lens like those you provide on Perseverance price or would price within the open market? Or a variety?

Kumler: We would like to not touch upon the price of particular person lenses as it’s delicate to competitors. Lenses are significantly costlier than normal industrial lenses (COTS) as a result of they’re manufactured in very small portions, they function in excessive environmental ranges, and so they include a mountain of check knowledge for every lens. There is no such thing as a room for error. Every little thing should be documented.

FE: What are you able to inform us concerning the manufacture of the glasses?

Kumler: Every digital camera lens meeting equipped by Jenoptik is an intricate meeting of steel and glass elements. The optical components needed to be aligned with one another with tolerances of the order of a micron. The floor finishes of those elements are simply as essential because the dimensional tolerances.

To be able to meet the necessities of EECAM, Jenoptik needed to develop and refine a number of distinctive testing capabilities. We’ve examined the efficiency of the lens meeting over a large temperature vary, together with extraordinarily chilly Martian temperatures. We have been additionally in a position to manufacture the lenses in extraordinarily demanding clear room circumstances.

Interplanetary contamination of the CacheCam lens was a significant concern for NASA – samples from Mars should be uncontaminated with microscopic particles from Earth. We have realized loads by studying learn how to function lenses in extraordinarily chilly temperatures, and our lenses are the cleanest we have ever constructed.

FE: Your lens assemblies are utilized in three essential areas, however what number of actual cameras does that symbolize?

Kumler: There are 3 kinds of cameras designed for floor operations: navigation cameras or Navcams, amount 2; Hazard prevention cameras or Hazcams, amount 6; and the Cachecam, amount 1.

Navcams purchase shade stereo pictures of the floor with a 96 diploma × 73 diploma discipline of view at 0.33 mrad / pixel. Hazcams will purchase shade stereo pictures of the floor with a 136 diploma × 102 diploma discipline of view at 0.46 mrad / pixel. Cachecam, a brand new kind of digital camera, will purchase pictures of Martian materials inside pattern tubes throughout caching operations at a spatial scale of 12.5 microns / pixel.

Editor’s be aware: NASA publications uncooked pictures of mars on-line with lots of posted virtually every day.

RELATED: Drone Helicopter lands on Mars Connected to Perseverance Rover’s Stomach

RELATED: Coloration Pictures of Mars Present Touchdown of Perseverance, Floor in Element