| Global modernization reinforces the everyday need for autonomous robots to serve needs without the help of human operators. These robots play an integral part in many endeavors, such as planetary exploration with the National Astronautics and Space Administration's Mars Exploration Rovers. Autonomous robots are also the focus of the Department of Defense's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Grand Challenge, in which a vehicle self-navigates across a large terrain.; This thesis discusses a robotics project aimed at autonomously returning a satellite payload system to a known location after the system has returned to the earth's surface by sending an autonomous robotic vehicle to retrieve the satellite. This thesis presents my design of the robotic controller, the computer hardware, electrical components, and machine vision, as well as the accompanying mechanical devices and features used to successfully complete this project and facilitate demonstrable field results. |
