Mixed-initiative planning in space mission operations
John L. Bresina, Paul H. Morris · 2007
The MAPGEN system represents a successful mission infusion of mixed-initiative planning technology. MAPGEN was deployed as a mission-critical component of the ground operations system for the Mars Exploration Rover mission. Each day, the ground-planning personnel employ MAPGEN to collaboratively plan the activities of the Spirit and Opportunity rovers, with the objective of achieving as much science as possible while ensuring rover safety and keeping within the limitations of the rover’s resources. The Mars Exploration Rover mission has now been operating for over two years, and MAPGEN continues to be employed for activity plan generation for the Spirit and Opportunity rovers. During the multi-year deployment effort and subsequent mission operations experience, we have learned valuable lessons regarding application of mixed-initiative planning technology to mission operations. These lessons have spawned new research in mixedinitiative planning and have influenced the design of a new ground operations system, called M-SLICE, that is baselined for the Mars Science Laboratory mission. In this paper, we discuss the mixed-initiative aspects of the MAPGEN system, focusing on the task, control, and awareness issues.